When proven innocent
by Maya Sunshine
Summary: If Sirius had survived that night at the Ministry, what would life had looked like for Harry? Set during the holiday between Harry's fifth and sixth year. Rated T.
1. Chapter 1

**Hiya!**  
**So, I love Sirius, and so I thought I'd write a fic about what might've happened if he survived that night at the Ministry. I'm not sure how to go about it later though, as I can't exactly stop after the summer ends. What will happen in Harry's sixth year, I mean, if Sirius had lived... Ah, well, we'll see. Please do review!**

**M. Sunshine**

* * *

Harry saw Sirius duck Bellatrix's jet of red light: he was laughing at her.

"Come on, you can do better than that!" he yelled, his voice echoing around the cavernous room. A jet of green light came shooting from the tip of her wand as she screamed in a frustrated way, and narrowly missed Sirius. Harry felt his breathing speed up. That green light. He knew exactly what spell had that colour. Sirius flicked his wand expertly, and to Harry's surprise, Bellatrix's wand flew out of her hand and was caught swiftly by Sirius.

"You really do need to practice more." He said matter-of-factly, twiddling her black wand. She screamed again, lunging towards Tonks, who was still unconscious on the stone floor. Before anyone could do anything at all, Tonks' wand was in the Death Eater's hand and she apparated with a loud crack. Suddenly, the room became very quiet. She'd gone. Left. And the other Death Eaters were all sprawled on the floor. Sirius snorted, and pocketed his wand, before braking Bellatrix's in half.

"I hope Tonks' wand doesn't work well for her." He said grimly. "Come on. We should get out of here." Dumbledore nodded, the usual twinkle in his eyes not there at the time; his eyes deep and fierce behind the half-moon glasses. Rushing over, Sirius helped Neville to his feet, and stretched out his hand to help Harry up too.

"I'll Apparate with you to the gates of Hogwarts. You are both to go straight to the Hospital wing. I need to help Dumbledore gather up the other's, including those scumbags." He added, nodding towards the numerous hooded men lying around on the floor. Harry merely nodded, simply too tired to do anything else. His godfather grabbed the two boys firmly, before turning on the spot. In all honesty, Harry barely noticed the apparition. He was so beyond everything, and moved like in a trance. When the cold night air ruffled his hair and caressed his cheeks, he thought he might collapse. And Sirius felt it.

"Come on, mate, just a little longer." He whispered, placing a strong arm around his godson's waist.

"No…" Harry murmured. "You need to… Help… Dumbledore, the others."

"Dumbledore has help from Kingsley and Remus, he'll be fine. And you obviously won't be." Sirius said firmly, steadying the boys on his sides. "Come on now." He flicked his wand at the gates, and after several clicking noises, they swung open, allowing them to enter, to then shut after them. Sirius walked slowly, making sure both the teenage boys were all right after every other step. It took quite a while, but eventually they reached the steps up to the Entrance. As soon as they started walking up, the doors burst open, framing an anxious looking Professor McGonagall.

"Oh, good Heavens." She said, hurrying down the steps to meet them. "Are you all right?" she inquired, looking at her pupils.

"Neville here needs to see Madam Pomfrey." Sirius informed. "I think Harry's just tired, but I'd like her to take a look anyway."

"Yes, of course."

"No, please." Harry protested weakly. "I don't need Madam Pomfrey…"

"Nonsense, Potter. Come along now." Waving her wand delicately, two stretchers appeared, hovering in mid-air. Sirius lay Neville on one of them and then motioned for Harry to lie on the other one.

"You… Have got to be joking." He panted.

"Don't be ridiculous Harry." Sirius snapped, pushing the bespectacled boy down onto the stretcher, making him lie down. With another flick of her wand, McGonagall sent the stretchers moving steadily up the stairs and in through the doors. Harry tried to get up, but realised he couldn't: some spell held him down. Swearing under his breathe, he hoped dearly no students were still up to see this. He was perfectly all right, why didn't Sirius see that? He heard Sirius run off down the path (as he could not Apparate on the grounds) and McGonagall hurrying inside, locking the doors with her wand before following the boys to the infirmary. Madam Pomfrey came hurrying out of her quarters dressed in a nightgown, as Harry and Neville arrived, followed by their haughty Head of House.

"Minerva, what is this all about?" she asked.

"They just came back from the Ministry. Sirius Black was just here, leaving them, but he's gone back to help Albus." The Mediwitch pursed her lips.

"All these adventures." She muttered. "Why is it so hard for the Potter family to stay out of danger? First James, and now Harry. Goodness me…" She kept muttering as she shifted the boys to beds, Transfiguring their clothes into pyjamas, and then started fussing over Neville. Harry felt comfortably drowsy, forgetting he was being held in hospital against his will. The bed was so soft, the pillows so cool, the duvet so nice on his sore body. The voices around him seemed to turn into mumbles and then he tuned them out completely, falling soundly asleep, without being interrupted by dreams for the first time in a long time.

* * *

The sound of murmuring voices and clinking of cutlery woke Harry up the next morning. The sun was shining brightly through the large windows, bathing the room in yellowish light. He opened his eyes, blinking at the blurry room, and reaching out for his glasses. They were suddenly slipped over his nose by someone sitting next to him. Sirius, he realised once he could see again.

"Hey mate." He said softly, a trace of his grin lingering on his tired face.

"Hi…" he replied slowly, propping himself up on his elbow. In the bed next to him, Neville was snoring quietly. Across the room, in respective beds, were Hermione, Ginny, Ron and Luna. Hermione was awake, reading a book intently; Ginny seemed half asleep; Luna was looking around with a distant look on her face and Ron was… Eating. He had a tray on his lap, with a plate of egg and bacon on it, and a glass of pumpkin juice on the side. Watching him silently, he noticed purple lines across his arms, disappearing under his t-shirt.

"How are you?" Sirius said, frowning ever so slightly at his godson. Harry rolled his eyes. After having slept properly throughout the night, he felt as good as ever.

"I'm good. I was just tired, I dunno why you made me come here."

"Just to be safe, Harry." Sirius said, and smiled. "I'm glad you're okay."

"What happened with the Death Eaters?" he asked, and then remembered another pressing matter. "And how come you can even be here? Isn't there a prize on your head?"

"Whoa, one question at a time. Right, Death Eaters. We rounded them up and they've been sent to Azkaban until they get a trial." He snorted. "A thing I never got. Anyway, it doesn't matter. Besides, Dumbledore actually managed to clear my name." Harry's mouth fell open.

"You're kidding."

"I never joke around." Harry raised an eyebrow, but Sirius ignored it. "Turns out Wormtail was at the Ministry too. Sneaky little rat. He was in the Atrium as we were leaving. Of course, with Dumbledore there he couldn't escape. The Aurors actually gave him Veritaserum on the spot. I didn't know they could do that… In any case, he confessed the whole thing." He grinned widely.

"So… You're free." Harry said, gobsmacked.

"I am indeed, though it'll take a while until the general public accepts it. Fine with me though. Anyway, that brings me to the next matter." Harry eyed him suspiciously. He had a hunch where this was going, but didn't dare think of it.

"Do you remember what I asked you two years ago, the night we first met?" he asked, looking into those green eyes which were so like Lily's. Harry nodded.

"You… You said I could come and live with you." Said Harry in a low voice. Sirius nodded, an almost sad smile on his face.

"I hope you know, Harry, that the offer still stands." He continued. "I mean… Only if you want to, of course… But after what you've told me about those Muggles I don't suppose they're much of a family either…"

"You mean you want me with you?" Harry asked, ignoring Sirius' rambling. The older man looked surprised.

"Of course I want you." He said. "Your mum and dad made me your godfather, and if you don't want to live with the Dursleys, then screw them." He said. Harry felt a smile appear on his face.

"Live with you… You know, that's the best news I've heard since I got the letter from Hogwarts." Sirius beamed down at him.

"I'll take that as a 'Yes, I would like to live with you', shall I?" he grinned. Harry just rolled his eyes, but his whole body warmed at the thought of it. Living with Sirius. He couldn't believe it. He couldn't believe he was so lucky.

"I'm not sure if it it's quite that simple." Both Harry and his godfather peered around, to see the Headmaster striding inside, his face slightly solemn.

"What?" Sirius said, rather rudely, Harry couldn't help but note.

"Sirius, you ought to know that Harry has a certain amount of protection as long as he lives with his relatives." Dumbledore said calmly, stopping at the foot of Harry's bed, smiling a small smile at the boy before turning to Sirius.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, though clearly seeing that Sirius knew what the Headmaster had been talking about.

"Harry, when your mother died to save you, she created a kind of shield. A shield that protects you from harm, and to an extent, from Voldemort. This protection will only work as long as you live with someone of your mother's blood, in short, the Dursleys." He eyed the fifteen-year-old boy lying in front of him, the twinkle returned to his piercing blue eyes. "However, there is one other place where the protection will work almost as strongly as with Petunia Dursley." Said the Headmaster.

"So… I can't live with Sirius?" The happiness that had settled in his mind started to melt and disappear, and he felt anger replace it.

"Of course you can, my boy." The Headmaster said, smiling that small, mischievous smile of his. "I was merely saying that you cannot live in your godfather's house." Sirius' expression eased up as the meaning of Dumbledore's words dawned upon him.

"I see." He said. "Well, that could be arranged, I suppose." Harry felt bewildered.

"What can be arranged?" he asked, annoyed by the two men knowing something he did not.

"Oh, you'll see." Sirius said, another sad smile appearing on his face. "You'll see."

* * *

The school year ended, and Harry found himself sitting on his four poster bed in the red and gold decorated dormitory. Seamus, Neville and Dean had already left to eat breakfast, but Harry had stayed behind, and of course, with him, was Ron.

"D'you… D'you want to go eat?" his friend asked slowly. Ron, always thinking about food. Harry wasn't hungry at all; he was still desperately trying to figure out what Dumbledore and Sirius had been talking about a few days prior. It annoyed him out of his wits that neither Sirius nor the Headmaster would tell him what was going on, and now Sirius had left and he had no opportunity to talk to him until he reached Platform 9 ¾. Sighing, he got up off his bed.

"Yeah, sure, let's go." Ron looked glad, and lead the way out of the dorm, down the stairs and out through the hole.

"So you're staying with Sirius over the summer then?" he asked as they strolled through the empty hallways of the castle towards the Great Hall.

"Looks like it. I'm confused though, he's up to something with Dumbledore."

"Dumbledore's always up to something, mate." Ron said, making Harry grin reluctantly.

"I s'pose." He replied as they jumped off the last step, entering the Great Hall, which was full of chattering students, all glad the exams were done and they got to go home. Scanning the Gryffindor table, Harry spotted Hermione, her face bent down as she was reading the paper. He nodded towards her, and they made their way over. The girl looked up when her friends approached.

"Oh, there you are." She greeted as they sat down opposite her. "There's an article in here about Sirius." She said, looking at Harry, who snatched the paper from her. On page four, the picture taken of Sirius in Azkaban took up a great deal of space. He felt anger bubble in the pit of his stomach, but ignored it and straightened the paper out.

_SERIAL KILLER FREED_

_Convicted murderer Sirius Black was announced innocent earlier this week, when Death Eater Peter Pettigrew confessed to said murders after being given Veritaserum. Black, who escaped Azkaban two years ago, is said to know be after custody of his godson, famous Harry Potter. Headmaster of Hogwarts School, Albus Dumbledore, is rumoured to have agreed to this deal, and it is to be believed that Mr Potter will be spending his summer with his godfather. _

_Black may be innocent in the eyes of the Ministry, but how long will it take for the population of England to accept his release? A man who is thought to have cold bloodedly killed more than once is bound-_

Harry stopped reading, and scrunched the paper into a ball, then throwing it on the table. Hermione looked sympathetically at him.

"What's happening then?" she asked. "Are you going to go live with him at Grimmauld Place?" Harry shook his head slowly, uncertainly. "No? But I thought you said-"

"Listen, Hermione, I don't know. I _am_ going to live with him, but apparently not in his parents' old house." She frowned.

"But why-"

"I don't know, Hermione!" he snapped. She pulled back a bit, looking indignant. Harry sighed, rubbing his eyes.

"I'm sorry." He said, looking her in the eye.

"That's all right." She said, sipping her tea. Ron was chomping away noisily at his breakfast, making Hermione give him an unappreciative look. Harry ate his toast in silence, not at all feeling the taste of it, rather eating because he knew he'd feel awful if he didn't.

"Well, I want to make sure I haven't forgotten anything." Hermione said eventually, standing up. "I'll see you in the Common room later, and we'll go together to the train." Harry nodded, and Ron grunted something. She snorted at her ginger friend, smiled at Harry and then stalked out of the Hall. It took another fifteen minutes for Ron to finish his breakfast, and Harry sat patiently waiting for him.

"Done?" he asked as Ron wiped his mouth on the back of his hand. Nodding, they both stood up.

"What's the time?" Ron asked as they headed for the staircase. Harry checked his watch.

"Ten past ten."

"And the carriages pick us up at…?" Harry rolled his eyes, but grinned all the same.

"Half past, like they have done for the last five years." Ron grimaced. "Our trunks have already been taken down, but I need to fetch Hedwig's cage. She was out flying all night." Ron merely nodded, as they walked in through the portrait hole. Hermione was sitting on the edge of the couch, staring into the wall, but looked at her watch now and then.

"There you are!" she exclaimed as they walked past, heading for their dorm. "Hurry up already!"

"Calm down." Ron muttered, as Harry charged up the stairs. Hedwig was perched on the top of his bed, but came down at his encouragement.

"In you go." She hopped into the cage, and Harry closed it securely before carrying it with him back down. "There." He said. Hermione was on her feet in a flash, glancing again at her watch.

"It's twenty past now. Hurry, for goodness' sake!" Ron cast a look at Harry as they followed her rapid pace out of their beloved Common room, heading for the train. Only a few more hours, then I'll know, Harry thought. Only a few more hours…


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter two!**  
**Just want to notify everyone that this might not be completely cannon compliant throughout the story, but I will do my best. Apart from the fact that Sirius survived, most things are the same: The prophecy, the Horcruxes etc.**  
**Please, please review, as it truly does make my day. I love your adding to favourites and story alerts, but I appreciate feedback too. Just keep that in mind.**  
**I hope you all liked it, please notify me if there are any spelling or grammar mistakes, or mistakes with the story in contrast to the original, and I will correct them!**

**M. Sunshine**

* * *

"Shouldn't we be there soon?" Harry asked for the umpteenth time. He was sharing a compartment with Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna and Neville. They'd been travelling for several hours, but now that they were getting closer, Harry started feeling greatly impatient.

"Merlin's beard, Harry." Ron muttered.

"It should only be another half an hour." Hermione said, doing her best to sound patient.

"But it can't have been only ten minutes since I asked!" he burst out. Luna smiled sweetly at this, but Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Just shut up Harry, do us all a favour." Ginny said. He frowned at her, but knew she was joking, so he returned to staring out of the window at the passing landscape. When he'd known it was hours left he hadn't bothered asking, but now, when he could feel how close he was… It was driving him slowly insane. To attempt making time speed up, he picked up Luna's Quibbler and flicked through it, stopping at a long article about the idiocy of the illegality of keeping Hippogriff's as pets. He smiled at the thought of Buckbeak, whom Sirius still had with him, and started reading. Surprisingly, Harry thought, the article was rather good. Not in a logical sort of way, but in an amusing way. Of course, Hippogriff's were hardly the ideal pet, as they could indeed be rather dangerous, but Harry would rather keep ten in his back garden than execute them all because people weren't being respectful.

"Harry?" He snapped his head up, meeting Hermione's eyes. "I just thought you'd like to know we'll be there in about five minutes." He was astonished at how quickly twenty five minutes seemed to have passed, and was thankful for the entertaining article. He gave the magazine back to Luna, and stared out of the window as the train slowed down, reaching its destination. As the train came to a halt, Harry jumped up off his seat.

"Relax, mate." Ron said, smirking.

"Oh, he's excited to see Sirius, let him be." Hermione said.

"Well, yeah, but he doesn't have to go barking mad because of it."

"For heavens' sake, Ronald…" Harry tuned out their bickering, as he always did. People were pressing through the aisle, all trying to get out, and they waited until last, as usual, to get off. In all honesty, though, Harry felt tempted to push his way through just to see Sirius sooner. He did not, however, simply stayed put and waited. It took about ten minutes until the stream of people thinned, and Harry walked first out of the compartment, leading the way as they headed for the door. It was open, and Harry could hear people shrieking, chatting, laughing and yelling on the platform, what with all the students greeting their parents, siblings and various relatives who had come to meet them on the platform. Harry spotted Mr and Mrs Weasley, and next to them… A large, black dog. His heart soared, though he felt partly disappointed, as he'd rather have been greeted by Sirius himself than by his dog self. Also, close to the Weasleys he recognised Hermione's parents.

"Well, my gran's waiting over there." Neville said, nodding towards an old lady far to the right of Sirius and the others. "I'll see you next term."

"Yeah, sure. Have a good holiday, Neville." Harry said.

"Bye!"

"Bye, Neville!"

"Yeah, my daddy's meeting me outside, so I'll see you soon." Luna said, hugging them all in turn, before waving and skipping away, her long, blonde hair flapping behind her.

"Mental, she is." Ron muttered as they headed for their own respective families.

"For God's sake, Ron, she's nice. We've got to know her, too." Hermione said in her usual bossy-sort-of-voice.

"Whatever." He muttered as they reached Mr and Mrs Weasley, Mr and Mrs Granger and Sirius.

"Oh, Ronnie!" Mrs Weasley shrieked, pulling him into a big hug. "Thank goodness you're all right."

"Seriously, mum…" Harry heard Ron mutter, before his mum let go of him, and moved on to Harry.

"Harry, darling, I'm so pleased to see you're well."

"Thank you, Mrs Weasley." He said meekly, smiling at her, and shaking hands with Mr Weasley. Once those greetings were done, Harry turned to the great black dog, which immediately jumped up, placing his front paws on Harry's shoulders.

"It's great to see you too, Snuffles." He said, scratching the dog's head. Sirius sniffed Harry's shoulder affectionately, and then jumped back down.

"Harry?" Harry looked up at Mr Weasley. "Sirius will speak to you once we get back to the Burrow. He'll explain everything." Harry's heart sank a tad, but he nodded. He had hoped he'd get all the info straight away, but now had to wait for two hours while going in the car.

"Well, I'd best be off." Hermione said, standing between her mum and dad. Harry walked over and hugged her, then letting Ron shake her hand awkwardly. "I'll probably come over to Ron's later on in the summer." She said cheerfully. "Bye now!" They all waved as she hurried off with her parents. Once Fred and George emerged from the mist (having arrived at the station with their parents to exchange a few words with Lee), they all began moving away from the train; heading for the car Mr Weasley had rented from the Ministry to drive them all home to Ron's.

* * *

The drive took closer to three hours, as Mr Weasley wasn't the best of driver's, and Harry sometimes felt like just taking the wheel from him and drive the car himself. When they eventually arrived, Harry flung the door open (as he was sitting by the window in the far right of the back) and jumped put, breathing in the fresh air. Sirius (still a dog) hopped out after him, and transformed into a man in front of Harry's eyes. In spite of himself, Harry actually flung his arms around his godfather. Ron stared at him, and Mrs Weasley looked almost teary eyed.

"Whoa, what's up?" Sirius asked, wrapping his arms uncertainly around his godson. Harry tried to compose his features, chastised himself for being so childish. Pull yourself together, bloody hell, he thought irritably and pulled away from Sirius.

"I'm sorry." He muttered, hurrying after Ron into the rickety house. They headed straight for the kitchen, as it was about five thirty, and they were starving after having only had sweets on the train. The rest of the family bustled in: Mr and Mrs Weasley followed by Ginny and then Fred and George who were talking loudly to Sirius.

"… and I think it should work."

"Listen, guys, Dementors are not human, they don't eat." Sirius said, rolling his eyes.

"But there must be a way of getting them these!" Fred said, waving a box of Skiving sweets in front of Sirius' nose.

"Put those away!" Mrs Weasley snapped, staring at the box as if it would explode any second. Fred just rolled his eyes, and stuffed the box into his rucksack, which he then threw on the floor. They all gathered around the table, though Mrs Weasley said:

"There's no need to sit around. It'll take a while to get this all done." The twins and Ron groaned.

"Well, then maybe you could help." She threatened, and they all scurried to their feet.

"Harry, can I speak to you?" Sirius said, and Harry felt his heart thud faster.

"Yeah, 'course." They walked into the living room, and Sirius shut the door after them. Harry stood in the middle of the room, unsure of what to do with his hands, so he turned and sat down on the couch, clutching one hand firmly in the other. Sirius came over, smiling, and sat down too.

"So, I understand you've been dying to know what on Earth all this secrecy is about." His godfather grinned, folding his arms and leaning against the arm of the worn sofa.

"Well… Yeah. I mean, I get the whole blood protection thing, sure. But Dumbledore said I could live with you, and didn't have to stay with the Dursley's… Come on, of course I'm confused." He exclaimed at the end. Sirius chuckled slightly, his eyes glowing with a kind of sneaky happiness.

"He did. And yes, you will be living with me. Obviously, it'll take a while for all the legal business to be approved, but it shouldn't be too much of a bother."

"Right. Then will you _please_ tell me where it is we're going to live, if it's not Grimmauld Place." Sirius made a mock shudder.

"Even if this blood thing didn't have anything to do with it, we would not have lived there. That place is absolutely vile."

"Agreed. Now come on, spill it." Sirius was still smiling smugly, and Harry, in frustration, thrust a cushion in his face. "Spit it out!"

"Hey!" he exclaimed, tossing the cushion back. "Alright, alright, Merlin's pants." He pulled a hand through his long, dark hair. "As Dumbledore said, there is one other place where the protection will work in a similar way. It took a while for him to see it, as at first we were sure you had to be living under the same roof as your Aunt. But it turns out," he said, a small crease on his forehead, "that it'll function properly in the place where you first lived. Where you got your scar, and where the… _sacrifice_ was first made." The word 'sacrifice' was said with a boat load of disgust. Harry frowned, too, at these words.

"But… But their… _Our_ house was destroyed after the attack on my parents." He said, though in a rather uncertain voice. This caused that smile to reappear.

"It was indeed destroyed. However, with some help, I have… restored it." This news was followed by silence, interrupted only by Mrs Weasley's muffled yell at the twins. Harry kept staring at his godfather. He had never really thought much of the home he could not remember. He'd seen some photographs where rooms had been visible in the background, but didn't know at all what it looked like, how big it was or if it had a garden.

"Witches and wizards from all over the world travel to Godric's Hollow to pay their respect to your parents and to wish you luck, did you know?" Sirius added softly, his dark eyes glues to Harry's green. Harry solemnly shook his head, dumbstruck by this piece of information. "Dumbledore thought we should save the messages. I'll show them to you, if you like." Harry still had trouble finding words to express precisely what he was feeling.

"I… But… So, we're living… There?" He said, stammering slightly, mentally kicking himself for stumbling on his word as soon as he opened his mouth.

"Yes, we are." Sirius' face now cracked into a huge grin. "We need to go to your Aunt and Uncle's house to pick up whatever you have there though." The immense joy Harry had been feeling at the sight of living in his parents' with Sirius thinned out a bit at these words. Looking forward to moving in with his godfather had made him temporarily forget about his insolent relatives.

"Right." He said.

"And they also need to sign the adoption papers." Harry almost choked on his tongue as the words left Sirius' mouth. The man looked completely at ease as he eyed his fifteen-year-old godson, whose eyes were big as saucers.

"Ad-"

"Adoption papers." Sirius said, emphasizing each syllable sarcastically. "I mean," he started again, feeling just a tad unsure, "If you want, that is. Of course, you don't have to have me adopt you, I just figured that-"

"Are you out of your bloody mind?" He interrupted, glad he this time managed to keep his voice stable.

"Erm…"

"If you want to adopt me, who the hell am I to say no? If I have to chance to get you as my… I dunno, _guardian_ or whatever, instead of the Dursleys, do you seriously believe I'd go with _them_?" Sirius just looked at Harry, an unreadable expression on his face.

"I just, you know…"

"Well, it doesn't matter. When can we get it done?" For the first time in almost fifteen years, Sirius could feel tears stinging in the corners of his eyes. Despite it, he forced them back, determined he would not let them fall while in the same room as his godson.

"I already have the papers. We could fill them in later on, and then we'll have to get your Aunt and Uncle's signatures at some point."

"Sounds good." Harry said, grimacing at his godfather.

"DINNER!" Mrs Weasley practically screamed through the house.

"I think we'd better get in there before the poor woman has a heart attack." Sirius grinned, and Harry followed him out of the room, and into the filling kitchen.

* * *

The evening was a great success, and Harry could hardly stop smiling. Everything had turned out so well, and we would be moving in with Sirius. For the first time in fifteen years, he'd have a real home. After they'd finished the meal and helped to put everything away, they were all absolutely exhausted.

"I'm so going to bed." Ron drawled, yawning widely.

"Right behind you." Harry said, and after they'd bid everyone goodnight they trotted up the stairs into Ron's room, which they would be sharing. Harry's trunk was already set at the foot of the rusty extra bed, and as soon as he had changed into his pyjamas he collapsed on the thin mattress.

"I feel like I haven't slept in days." Harry sighed, rubbing his eyes under his glasses.

"Me too." Ron said, though he was still changing. "What did Sirius say, by the say?" he asked while pulling a t-shirt over his head.

"Oh, yeah. Y'know he wants me to live with him, but we're not going to live at Grimmauld place?"

"Sure." He said, kicking a few magazines out of the way as he made for his bed.

"Apparently," Harry continued, lying down properly under his duvet, "we're going to live in Godric's Hollow. In my parents' old house." Ron stared at him in disbelief, his mouth slightly open.

"You're joking."

"'Course I'm not! Apparently he and Dumbledore have fixed the place up. The whole blood-protection works well there, Sirius said." Ron nodded slowly, sitting down.

"Wow… That's awesome." He said after a while, looking up at his friend. "I mean… It might be weird, but y'know…" Harry nodded, putting his arms behind his neck and stared up into the ceiling. Ron lay down in his own bed.

"Yeah, I think it'll be great." Then he remembered, feeling that strange sense of warmth filling him up. "Sirius is going to adopt me."

"_What?_" Ron blurted out, sitting up again, his eyes huge as he stared at Harry.

"Yeah… He told me earlier, while we were talking about the whole house thing."

"Merlin's… That's… Bloody hell, Harry." Said Ron, having trouble finding any words.

"I'll say." Harry replied, knowing what Ron was thinking. "I have to go to the Dursley's one more time, though. To pick up my stuff, and so that they can sign… The adoption papers."

"This is sort of freaking me out." The ginger boy confessed. "I mean… That'll make Sirius kind of like… Your dad."

"Well… By law, yeah, but I don't think either of us will look at it like that." Harry hadn't really thought about this, but doubted very much that Sirius would try to become his father. This was merely a way of ensuring he had a legal right to live with Sirius, and that Sirius could legally take care of Harry and have him with him until he turned seventeen. Harry felt sad that his godfather had been in prison for so long, that they couldn't have done this years ago. At the same time, though, he was glad it had happened at all, and was forever grateful for the fact that Bellatrix's killing curse had missed Sirius.

"I s'pose…" Ron mumbled, and Harry could tell he was almost asleep, so he took off his glasses, placed them on the table by his bed and then rolled over, falling asleep after only minutes of meaningless thinking.

* * *

After a rather hectic breakfast the following morning, Harry stuffed away the few things he'd got out of his trunk and then heaved it down the stairs. Sirius was sitting in the kitchen, conversing in a low voice with Mr Weasley. Harry dumped his heavy load at the bottom of the stairs and edges closer to the kitchen door.

"… is what Dumbledore said." Came Sirius' muffled voice.

"But has anyone actually heard all of it?"

"Yes, but only two people."

"Dumbledore, obviously." Mr Weasley said. "And…?"

"Harry, of course."

"He's heard all of it?"

"Yes, and neither of them will share it." Sirius sighed. "But that doesn't really matter. If what Dumbledore suspects has occurred is true, we have a big, bloody problem."

"He may be wrong." Mr Weasley said.

"Maybe. But how often has that happened, Arthur?" Harry frowned. What was it Dumbledore suspected?

"I see your point." Again, Sirius sighed deeply.

"I need to go. I'd think Harry wants to get a move on."

"Yes, of course." Harry heard scratching of chairs, and quickly trotted away to his trunk. The door swung open and Sirius strode out.

"Harry! You're done. Brilliant." He beamed at his godson and made his way over. "Where's Hedwig?" Harry gestured to the table by the front door, on which a gleaming cage was stood, containing his snowy white owl. "Great. Well, we have to Apparate, as there is no Floo currently installed at your parents' house. Or, our house, as it is now." He smiled lopsidedly at Harry. "It's not very pleasant, as you may remember." Harry grimaced at the memory of the night Sirius had apparated with him from the Ministry to Hogwarts.

"I prefer flying." He stated. Sirius chuckled.

"Yes, so do I. Though this is a whole lot quicker." He turned to Mr Weasley. "Would you mind sending Harry's trunk and owl after us when we've gone?"

"Not at all. Let me call the others to say goodbye." He turned and looked up the stairs. "RON! GINNY! FRED, GEORGE! MOLLY! HARRY'S LEAVING!" Harry blinked at these bellowed words. He didn't know Mr Weasley was capable of such a voice. A thunder of feet echoed through the house as the Weasley family all appeared in the crammed hall to bid Harry goodbye.

"We'll see you soon." Fred said.

"Yeah, very soon." George agreed as they shook Harry's hand in turn.

"'Course, guys." He grinned. Ginny moved closer, looking hesitant.

"I'll… I'll see you later, Harry. Have a good summer." She hugged him quickly before backing away.

"Goodbye, Harry, dear." Mrs Weasley said heartily, giving him a tight hug and smile. "You're welcome here any time you like."

"Thanks Mrs Weasley." Said Harry as Ron moved up.

"I'll see you, mate." He said, slapping Harry's back.

"Sure will." Harry replied and they grimaced at one another.

"Bye, Mr Weasley." Harry shook the older Weasley's hand.

"Goodbye, Harry." He said, smiling down at the boy.

"Thanks for everything, Molly." Sirius said as he received a hug from her too. "We'd best be off. See you in a few weeks!" They opened the door and Sirius brought Harry outside the protective wards around the Burrow.

"Ready?"

"Yeah." He grabbed his godfather's arm as the latter turned on the spot and was sucked into limbo.


	3. Chapter 3

**Finally finished this, haha. I know it's a bit shorter, but I think it should end there. Besides, I feel like I have a major writers block coming on, so I thought I'd get something posted before that happens...**  
**Ah, well, please review!**

**M. Sunshine**

* * *

The sensation of being pressed through a tight tube was one Harry thought he'd never get used to. At the point where he thought he would not bare it any longer, he gulped down deep breaths of fresh, cool air, and opened his eyes. He was standing beside his godfather in front of a small, stone cottage. A narrow path led up through the recently mown lawn to the front door, a neat thing in sturdy wood with an intricately decorated iron handle. Small windows were placed on either side of the door, along with larger ones on the upper floor as well as to the other rooms. A thick, green hedge surrounded the building and its small garden, and a gate was the only way onto the property. Harry stood, staring in bewilderment at the house that had been his first home. Thought that his parents had lived there, walked in and out of the door, touched the handle…

"You okay?" Sirius said, his forehead showing the slightest crease and his eyes betraying the worry he felt, eyeing his godson with some discretion. Harry nodded, not trusting himself to say anything comprehensible.

"Right." Sirius felt a twinge of grief as he looked at the scrawny boy standing next to him, staring at the small house with wide eyes. He had known James since childhood, had spent years and years with both him and Lily. And there stood their only son, who had got to know them a mere year, and a year he could not remember at that. He mentally cursed fate for letting it happen, finding himself wishing he could exchange some of the time he'd spend with James and giving it to Harry. He shook his head.

"Come on. We should go inside." He smiled encouragingly at Harry, who nodded again, and walked first up to the gate, opened it and started up the path. The fine gravel crunched under his trainers, but he kept his eyes trained on the door, as if it would open up and show him some new, yet to be discovered world. Sirius smiled sadly. When he had first arrived back there to renovate the place tears had immediately started to rush down his face, and he'd found it hard to even look at the attractive façade of his best friends' home. However, this feeling of sad anger and frustration had been replaced by a kind of pride. He was doing it for Harry, to make sure he gave Harry the life he deserved, for him to see what it was Voldemort had taken from him.

They reached the door, and Sirius indicated for Harry to open it. With a surprisingly steady hand, Harry reached out and closed his fingers around the cold metal, carefully pushing it down. It made no sound, but clicked when being opened. Harry pulled the door open and stepped inside. Inside was a small hall, followed by an archway that led to a corridor. He continued into that corridor, and through the door to the left of the archway was the living room, a rather big room (considering the size of the house) with an old yet soft and comfortable couch and armchair, a fireplace and large bookcases along the beige walls.

Harry took all of this in, smiling slightly, and moved to the door on the right wall of the sitting area. Not surprisingly, he found himself in the kitchen, which hadn't been updated in ages, he could tell, but he loved it. He was sure Sirius had left most things just like they had been when his parents' had lived there, and Harry wouldn't have wanted it any other way. Turning right again, he found himself at the end of the corridor. There was a small bathroom there, but he turned and continued back towards the hall, then turning left to walk up the stairs. They were, like most of the house, clad in a soft grey carped that muffled any steps. Once on the upper landing, Harry saw four doors, to on each side of the short corridor.

"The one farthest in to the right is the bathroom." Sirius said quietly behind him. Harry nodded.

"Which… Which one was their room?" He couldn't even manage to choke out 'my parents'.

"This one right here." He nodded towards the door on their left, and walked up to place a hand on it. "We've left it basically untouched. Your room is the one across from the bathroom and I'll take the one across to this one." Harry merely nodded again, and Sirius opened the door.

James and Lily's bedroom was painted in a light, slightly off-white colour. A large window was set on the wall opposite the door, a bed with four posts (Harry thought it looked vaguely like the beds in his common room, though bigger). On it laid a thick bedspread in dark purple. In one corner was a large, wooden wardrobe which reached the ceiling. On the walls were several paintings (both Muggle ones and moving ones) along with a number of photographs.

"We just dusted everything off." Sirius murmured, and Harry thought he could detect a hint of sadness in his godfather's voice. Harry wondered briefly (and with a bit of embarrassment) if his parents had slept on that bed, with those sheets. Of course, they'd touched everything else in the room. He felt tears blur his vision, warm and stinging. Sirius noticed Harry's solemn posture, and placed a hand on his shoulder, rather unsure of how to comfort the boy.

"Come on, mate. Let's get you settled." He gently pulled his godson out of the room and let the door shut and lock behind them, before he led him down the hall and into the next room. It had always been supposed to be Harry's, though he'd still had his cot in his parent's room when it'd… happened. It wasn't a large room: it had a bed in a regular size and height, a desk against one wall, with a wooden and a wardrobe and chest of drawers along another. A window framed the light blue sky and the thin willow that was standing right next to the house. Its branches moved slightly in the wind, sometimes brushing against the wall of the house. The walls were currently wallpapered in bluish grey, and the floor was dark wood with a grey carpet.

"If there's anything you want changing that's easily fixed." Sirius said, trying to break the tension. Harry thought for a moment.

"Could you… Could you perhaps change the sheets so they're like at my dorm? I mean, all white and then a red and gold bedspread?" Sirius smiled fondly, and with a wave of his wand Harry's request was made reality. "Thanks…"

"That all?" Sirius felt surprised: the room was old and Harry could decorate it however he wanted, and all he changed was the bed linens to make them look like the ones in school?

"Yeah… For now." There was a deep thudding noise from downstairs, making them both spin around.

"That'll be your stuff. Come along." They left the room and headed down into the living room. In front of the fireplace stood Harry's school trunk, his backpack and Hedwig's cage (which was currently empty). Sirius grabbed the trunk, and Harry took the other things and they walked back to Harry's room. The trunk was placed on his bed to allow Harry to unpack; his rucksack he dropped on the floor and Hedwig's cage was placed on the empty desk. The silence that followed was profound, and Harry fidgeted slightly. He'd known Sirius for two years, and he supposed (no, knew) that he loved the man. It was strange, however, that for the first time ever he had a home where he would want to come, and someone to come home to. It seemed to slowly fill that hole in his chest, but somehow it was a rather painful process.

"I'll… I'll go down and make some tea." Sirius said in a low voice, hesitated for a moment and then hurried out and down into the kitchen. Harry sighed deeply and sank down onto the bed. This was home. This was _truly_ home, perhaps even beating Hogwarts in that category. He loved the house, loved that his parents had lived there, touched the objects and breathed the air, loved that Sirius was there with him. So why did he feel so hollow?

"Come on, Harry." Sirius called. Heaving another sigh, Harry got to his feet and trotted downstairs, into the kitchen, having his first cup of tea in that kitchen. With Sirius. At home.

* * *

"Oi, Harry!" Startled, Harry almost fell off his bed. They'd been living in Godric's Hollow for three days, and were both settling in nicely. To Harry's great relief, the strange feeling in his chest was slowly disappearing and he found it easier to relax.

It was just past eleven, and Harry had been lying lazily on his bed, his Charms book open in front of him. Normally the homework he got over the summer was great, as it helped remind him that magic was in fact real. Now, however, it was a blasted curse. He had loads of things he'd rather spend his days doing: flying, going out with Sirius, playing wizard's chess, or Exploding Snap, visiting Ron… And he was forced to read and compose essays. Bloody brilliant. Grateful for an excuse to delay his work, he chucked the book onto the floor and walked out of the room. In the living room he found his godfather, who was sitting on the couch with the Daily Prophet wide open.

"There you are." He said as Harry entered and took a seat in the armchair. The newspaper was folded and put aside as Sirius faced and smiled at his godson.

"What's up?"

"It seems we've both now got used to this deal," Sirius started, grinning slightly. "And so I believe there are a few things we need to discuss." Harry felt puzzled. "Rules, Harry." Sirius said, clearly rather amused. He wasn't much of the strict parent, Sirius, and he knew it. When James had asked him to be godfather (and he had screamed yes in reply) he'd always imagined being the fun bloke around Harry. The person, to whom he would come when he was pissed off with his parents, had trouble with girls or just wanted to get away. That was no longer possible. He loved the boy, of course he did, probably more than he'd ever loved anyone before. But Sirius never considered himself being a father. He was forever a bachelor, always joking about. His new role in Harry's life didn't mean he couldn't mess around with Harry; he just couldn't do it all the time.

Harry groaned.

"Come on, kiddo, we need to have some kind of rules." Harry rolled his eyes, but was being rather decent about the whole thing, Sirius thought.

"Sure. And they are?" Sirius had actually spent the last three days trying to come up with rules that would help keep Harry safe at the same time as they didn't make him feel too constricted.

"Listen, I know you're almost sixteen and probably find rules ridiculous. I know I would have done. But you're… You're you, if you like, and I just need to be sure that you're safe." Harry kept himself from rolling his eyes again.

"Sure, Sirius."

"Okay, let's start basic: chores. I know the Dursley's treated you like some ruddy house-elf, which is beyond unfair, but you do need to help if we're going to be able to do this." Harry nodded his agreement. "You know, keep your room tidy, help with the dishes, that sort of thing." Harry smiled. His entire life he'd been forced to cook all meals, vacuum the entire house twice a week, clean the toilets, weed the garden, mow the lawn, wash the car… Yes, this was definitely an improvement.

"Also, the money your parents left you is from now on going to be safely locked away and be forgotten about." Harry raised his eyebrows at this statement. "You'll need the money later. Besides, as your _guardian_," he put sarcastic emphasis on the word, "I should be the one paying for your school things and such."

"Sounds fair." Harry said with a grin.

"I'll give you an allowance every week when you're at Hogwarts. If you for some reason need more money, just owl me and we'll see." His godfather continued smugly.

"I'm not ten years old you know." Harry said, rolling his eyes though still smiling.

"Well ha-ha. Another thing, and listen carefully, if you don't mind." He said, regaining Harry's full attention. "You mustn't, ever, leave this house without telling me where you're going."

"Oh, _bloody_ hell, Sirius…" Harry started, but Sirius waved to him to be quiet.

"It's not that I don't trust you, mate, I just don't trust anyone else. I can't have you wandering around the streets while Voldemort and his gang are looking everywhere for you. No, that's not happening." Harry was surprised by how firmly Sirius laid down this rule. He didn't really mind. What would he do wandering about when Sirius would be at home?

"Fine." He grumbled, though his godfather could sense the teen wasn't really that annoyed about the scenario. Sirius grinned.

"Other than that I expect you to get up before eleven o'clock, do your homework and not spend the days locked up in misery in your room." Harry grimaced.

"Fair does."

"Good to hear. Now, enough of this rubbish. What shall we do today?"


	4. Chapter 4

**Hope that wasn't too slow for you all c:**  
**I love Sirius and Harry. Greatest wizards, they are!**  
**Please review!**

**M. Sunshine**

* * *

Harry thoroughly enjoyed the life he had recently begun living. For the first time, summer holidays was something fun and relaxing, rather than an affair he couldn't wait to be over. Together with Sirius he practiced Quidditch, went to Diagon Alley, had Remus Lupin over, visited the Weasley's and stayed inside all day playing wizard's chess and Exploding Snap. It was almost, he thought, like having a father. In some ways, though, this always made him shake his head sullenly. At times, he found himself thinking of Sirius as his dad, but it always made him feel horribly guilty. He didn't know why: he was quite sure his father would have eagerly approved of this arrangement. After all, James was the one who had made Sirius godfather.

The dreaded mental monologue occurred again on one particularly fine Tuesday morning. After two weeks of having plain fun, they were going to head to the Ministry to authenticate and sign the adoption papers. And, as soon as the Dursley's had signed too, Sirius would, legally, be his dad. Reaching out for his glasses, Harry sat up in his bed. Slipping the thin frames over his nose, he got out of bed and didn't cast a single look in the mirror before exiting and making his way down to the kitchen. Harry could smell coffee, and so he knew Sirius would be up.

True enough, he found his godfather in the kitchen, sitting by the table, the _Daily Prophet_ open on the table and a cup of steaming coffee beside his right hand.

"Morning." The teen said gruffly as he slumped down into his usual seat. Sirius grinned widely.

"Morning, mate. How're you doing?" Harry shrugged.

"Fine, I s'pose." Sirius closed the paper and looked intently at the boy.

"Anything wrong?" Harry felt exasperated by the way his godfather immediately could see through his façade. All night he'd been tossing and turning, trying to figure out how the felt about the whole adoption thing.

On the one hand, he was seriously annoyed with himself for feeling as insecure about it as he did. He loved Sirius, he admitted, and he'd rather live with a pack of raving vampires than go back to the Dursley's. But on the other hand he didn't know what Sirius expected. Did he think Harry would accept it all in an instant and start calling him dad? No, Harry scolded himself. No, Sirius wasn't like that.

"Well…" Harry started uncertainly, not at all knowing what to say.

"Yes?" Sirius pressed.

"I know I said I would love for you to adopt me." He paused, but hurriedly continued upon seeing Sirius' pained expression. "I still do, really, I think it's great. It's just that… It feels strange, if you like. You'd… You'd be my dad." He mumbled the last words, entwining his fingers with each other.

"Oh." Sirius finally understood. "It feels strange thinking of me as your father?" Harry inclined his head. "Harry, it doesn't have to be like that." He said softly. "The relation between the two of us will be whatever you want it to be. The adoption is just to make sure no one else can take you away from me." Harry looked up. "I've lost you to the Dursley's once before, and I will not go through it again." Nodding, Harry smiled weakly.

"Thanks."

"For what?" Sirius asked incredulously.

"I dunno. Everything." Sirius reached over and ruffled his messy hair, feeling that maybe Harry was just a little too old for such treatment, but decided he didn't care.

"Any time, mate." Harry flashed a small grin and poured himself some juice. "We need to get to the Ministry at ten." Sirius continued. "I suggest we Apparate." Harry groaned at this. "I know you hate it, but it's the fastest way. I haven't had time to get the Floo fixed, and flying would take far too long." Harry just huffed and buttered a piece of toast. Sirius ignored him and kept going with the plans for the day. "Once the papers are all set we need to head to your relatives." Harry knew they'd have to go there, but he'd still been secretly hoping that it would turn out they didn't need their signatures. He nodded slowly.

"Listen Harry. I know you don't like them. Merlin knows I don't like them for what they've done to you, but if we are to do this their signatures are needed. You see that, don't you, Pup?" Harry was startled by the nickname. Sirius had never called him that before (though it was rather obvious from where he got it). It made his chest ache and his eyes slightly watery. _For God's sake, Harry, get a grip! _He thought, mentally kicking himself.

"Come on, mate, say something." Sirius sounded genuinely concerned, and it killed Harry.

"I'm fine, Sirius. All good." He said with a faint smile as he bit into his toast. He, Sirius, wasn't sure he believed his godson, but decided to let the matter die. For the time being.

They finished breakfast, and once they were both fully dressed (Sirius having insisted that Harry wear his school trousers and shirt) they walked out of the front door. Sirius locked it with a flick of his wand and started down the path.

"The house and garden are protected by the same kind of enchantments that protect Hogwarts." He explained. "We can't Disapparate on the property." Harry merely nodded, feeling almost a bit nauseous. He _really_ didn't want to go to the Ministry: last time he was there it had been to save Sirius (who really had not been in danger at all), and he'd bumped into a large group of Death Eaters. Needless to say, it hardly brought back any pleasant memories.

"Harry?" He jumped, and realised he'd been standing still outside the garden gate, staring into space. Shaking his head, he walked up to his godfather and grabbed his arm. "Here goes." Sirius turned on the spot and they were both pulled into the tight space between spaces. Upon arriving in the Atrium, Harry gasped for air, his world spinning.

"Steady there, mate." He felt Sirius' arm around him, and felt ridiculous, being held up like some child. He stood straight, ignoring his throbbing head.

"I'm fine." He said in an attempt at convincing both himself and Sirius. His godfather didn't seem to believe this at all, and didn't let it drop like he had earlier.

"Don't do that." He said. "Come on Harry, what's wrong?" He turned so that he was standing right in front of the young boy.

"It's just… It's this place."

"I understand you feel uncomfortable about it, but you were down already this morning." Sirius pointed out.

"Well, it's that and the adoption thing." Sirius frowned.

"If you don't want to do this, then…"

"No! No, Sirius, I do want to do it, really. It's just… Strange." He sighed at his stuttered words and rubbed his hand over his forehead. "Come on; let's just get this done with." Sirius nodded and they headed for the lifts.

* * *

"Just knock on the bloody door!" Sirius hissed at his godson, nudging him forwards. Harry muttered under his breath and banged noisily on the clean front door into the house he so despised. It was about half past eleven, and they had just arrived at number 4, Privet Drive. To Harry's relief, the employee at the Ministry had informed them that they only required one signature, if that one was Petunia Dursley. Of course, the woman didn't work, so that wasn't a problem. With Vernon away, Harry figured he might actually survive the meeting. There were some banging noises from inside before the door was carefully opened, and a rather horsey face appeared in the crack.

"Aunt Petunia." Harry said through gritted teeth.

"What are you doing here?" she enquired with a harsh voice, sizing them both up and down. Sirius moved up next to Harry.

"As I informed you in the letter, we need your signature to get through with the adoption." He said, making a real effort of sounding polite. Petunia looked up and down the street before opening the door wider.

"Get in. Quickly!" They both bustled inside and she slammed the door behind them. She then led them through to the kitchen. Without being asked, Sirius drew the scroll of parchment out of his pocket and unrolled it on the table.

"I trust you have a pen?" he said in a slightly icy tone. Petunia pursed her lips and snatched up a nearby ball tip pen. With eyes like daggers, Sirius pointed at the empty line on the document. "Just there, thank you." Petunia pretended to read it all through, and then scribbled her name unceremoniously on the line, chucking the pen down when done.

"I trust I won't have to see him again." She said, pretending as though the boy was not present.

"If we can be spared from seeing you, then yes." Sirius replied with the same amount of vice. He rolled the parchment back up and sent it to the Ministry by tapping it three times with his wand. "All done." He directed at his godson, who looked pale. "Let's go." Nodding to Petunia, he clamped his hand down on Harry's shoulder and marched him straight out of the house.

"Well… That was quick." Harry said once they were back on the street, heading for a safe place to Apparate from.

"Told you, didn't I?" Sirius grinned. "Nasty woman, she is." Harry nodded in agreement. "This will do fine." On cue, Harry took his godfather's arm and they travelled back to Godric's Hollow. Back home.

"I think we need an early lunch." Noticing he felt absolutely starved, Harry nodded eagerly as they walked inside.

"I just need to get changed." Harry said, grimacing at his godfather.

"Good thinking." When they were both comfortably dressed in jeans and t-shirts, they entered the kitchen to find something to eat.

"What do you feel like?"

"I have absolutely no idea." Harry said tiredly. The visit at the Ministry had gone pretty well, but hearing the dull Ministry employee go on and on about what the adoption meant really had exhausted him.

"Me neither." Sirius said. "Well, actually, why don't we just have toasted sandwiches?"

"Sounds good." Harry said, and started getting all the things out of the fridge.

"So you're all right with all of this?" asked Sirius while buttering the bread.

"Yeah, 'course. Why wouldn't I be?"

"I dunno. You just seemed so uncertain earlier. I just don't want you to feel like I'm forcing this on you." Harry sighed for what felt like the hundredth time that day.

"I'm not uncertain about the adoption. It's all done now, and really, it feels great, knowing that I'll never have to go back to the Dursley's." He paused for a moment. "It's just… Like I said, it's the whole father and son thing that sort of freaks me out." Pausing again, he saw through the corner of his eye how Sirius had stopped his task and was looking intently at him. "I've never had a dad. I know we won't have it like that, but it's still a similar kind of situation, you know?" Sirius nodded slowly.

"So, what 'freaks you out', is simply that I'll be the equivalent of a father?" Harry shrugged.

"I guess."

"You're basically saying you're scared of what this will mean."

"I suppose…" Sirius pinched the bridge of his nose hastily.

"Listen to me for a second. Yes, legally I am now your father, guardian, whatever. That doesn't matter. You may see me as whatever you like. I'm your godfather, and I'm guessing you're okay with that." Harry nodded. "Well then, fine. Call me Sirius; it's worked fine up 'til now. I just want you to know, Harry, that if you ever want me to be your dad, then I will. But if that scares you or makes you feel uncomfortable, then forget it." Harry looked up and Sirius smiled at him. "We make our own rules, mate. You decide for yourself." He smiled, almost reluctantly, back at the man.

"Yeah. I'll get used to it." He nodded to the bread. "Now get on with your work, old man. I'm starving." Sirius snorted a short laugh.

"Who're you calling old?" He asked mockingly, chucking the sandwiches in the oven. Harry didn't answer, merely rolled his eyes while placing plates on the table and putting the foods away. Eventually they sat down opposite one another, thankfully eating their improvised lunch.

"So. What d'you fancy doing tomorrow then?" Sirius asked his godson about halfway through his sandwich. Harry shrugged.

"Dunno really. Doesn't matter." He added with a grimace, feeling his nonchalance might annoy his godfather. Sirius just snorted.

"Well there's a surprise. Come on, there must be _something_ you feel like doing."

"Honestly, just being at home doesn't sound too bad." Sirius groaned.

"You're so boring! I'm beginning to doubt if you're actually James' son." Harry raised his eyebrows.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're being dull, mate." Sirius said scornfully. "All staying at home, studying. You're beginning to turn scarily like Remus. What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing! I'm just not up for some big adventure. I get enough of those in school." Sirius didn't look at all sympathetic.

"Well, if you're going to be _my_ son, I need to get you out of this dull phase." Harry threw a piece of cucumber at his godfather.

"I am appalled, young man!" He exclaimed with mock astonishment. "Throwing food! Have I not taught you better?"

"You haven't taught me _anything_." Harry smirked, flicking another piece at the indignant man. Sirius opened his mouth to retort, but closed it again.

"Damn. That's right. Ah, well, easily fixed. Listen here. If you're aiming at starting a food fight you mustn't be so modest. You need to throw something that'll actually irritate the other person, not a silly vegetable. Let's see…" He got up and checked the other sandwiches. "Ah." Picking up one with mozzarella and tomato, he looked thoughtfully at it for a moment before chucking it at Harry's chest. Huffing, Harry picked up the pieces of food, dropping them on the table.

"You missed." He said matter-of-factly. "What's the matter Sirius? You're accuracy wavering? Getting a bit old are we?"

"Watch it." Sirius smirked.

"Is that a grey hair?"

"Okay, that's it!" Chuckling Harry ducked the next sandwich and charged out of the kitchen as his godfather began running after him.

"When I catch you, Harry James, you will regret signing those adoption papers!"

"What the hell makes you think you'll catch me?" He yelled back, throwing the back door wide open and running out in the garden, towards the old pavilion, which had been recently painted, making it glow white among the green leaves and red roses. He ran up the stairs and collapsed on the bench inside, exhausted from the laughing and running. Sirius arrived next to him, and doubled over.

"I need to exercise." He determined, panting.

"I'll say." His godfather smacked him lightly across the back of his head. "Just being honest." Harry said in defence.

"Then stop being honest, you fool." They sat next to each other on the bench, catching their breath.

"Your dad built this for your mum." Sirius said after a while, looking around the small, delicately built pavilion. "She was so obsessed with this garden, and didn't know what to do with this part. It wasn't good for a flowerbed, she tried several times." He smiled fondly at the memory. "James made her go away for two days, and had finished it when she got back. He even built some of it 'manually'." He chuckled. "Nuts." Harry smiled. "They'd be glad you're back home. You're supposed to be here." Harry nodded.

"It feels right." He said, though he wasn't sure exactly what he meant by that. It felt like home, and it had done since he had first stepped over the threshold.

"Thought it might." He sighed. "Come one, Pup, we need to tidy up the kitchen." Harry groaned, but followed without protest as they made their way back inside to clean up the mess they'd made.

/

"Let him in, will you, Harry." Sirius said from where he was sitting in the armchair. It was later that day, and they were in the living room, playing chess (and Harry was sorely loosing). An owl was perched on the window sill, a neat scroll tied to its leg. Harry stood and walked over to the window, opening it a bit to let the large bird inside. It fluttered straight over to Sirius and held up the letter. He untied it, gave the bird a piece of a biscuit before sending it off again. Closing the window behind it, Harry sat back down on the couch. Sirius read with a plain expression, his dark eyes moving quickly across the page. Eventually he frowned, and summoned parchment, ink and quill silently. Harry watched from where he was sitting.

"Everything okay?"

"Yeah, sure. From Dumbledore, that's all." The objects flew into the room, and Sirius instantly started scratching down a reply.

"What did he want?"

"Hmm?" Sirius dried the ink with his wand and rolled the finished letter up.

"Dumbledore, what did he want?" Harry clarified.

"Oh, nothing, nothing. Well, I'm going to see him tomorrow. There are a few things we need to discuss."

"Can I come?" he asked casually, ordering his knight to thrash Sirius' castle (delighted that he'd managed to make a rather good move).

"Sorry, mate. Won't be long though. I can ask Remus to come over while I'm gone, if you like."

"No, that's all right…"

"Come one, Harry. I'll be back before you know it. You should get some homework done while I'm gone." Harry raised his eyebrows sceptically at this remark.

"Really Sirius?"

"Cut me some slack, Harry, I'm still learning the whole parenting thing." Harry snorted, but it turned into a groan as Sirius with a nice move won the game.


	5. Chapter 5

**WOOP! Chapter five for ya' c:**  
**Not sure if it's very exciting, but quite frankly, I had fun writing it. I love Remus :D**  
**Please review.**

**Taa,**

**M. Sunshine**

* * *

"Harry! Oi, Harry!" Harry rolled over onto his stomach, and cracked an eye to check the time. Quarter to eleven. How the hell did he manage to sleep for that long? He groaned and sat up, sliding his glasses onto his nose.

"HARRY!" Sirius yelled again.

"What?" he said groggily, not sure if his godfather had heard him. Sirius eventually thrust the door open, raising an eyebrow at the sad sight of his godson, sitting half dead on the edge of the bed.

"Good morning sunshine." He muttered. Harry merely shot him a contemptuous look. "Listen, I'm leaving for Hogwarts now. Remus will be arriving at half past eleven, so please be dressed by then."

"You said I could sleep till eleven." Harry defended himself. Sirius rolled his eyes.

"I didn't think you would actually sleep for that long." He admitted.

"Neither did I…" Harry said, almost inaudibly. "So, what does Dumbledore want?"

"He needs to speak to me about something." He answered hesitantly.

"Yes…?" Harry enquired, standing up to get his clothes on.

"Just some pressing matters, mate, that's all. Anyway, I'm off. I'll be back before three anyway. See you!" He waved, winked and then departed. Harry sighed deeply. He hated being left in the dark. Muttering for a moment, he then pulled on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt before walking downstairs and into the kitchen. He put the kettle on and then spotted a plate of pancakes. Next to them was a piece of parchment with the imprint from a dog's paw on it. He smirked and pulled the plate closer after he'd made himself some tea. The Daily Prophet was lying on the table, but he pointedly ignored it. It was always full of rubbish, and he really didn't fancy reading any of Rita Skeeter's lies anyway.

He finished his breakfast, and placed the plate in the sink (deciding he would wash it up later) together with his cup and then headed back to his room. He wasn't entirely sure what to do: this was the first time he'd been left alone in his new home, and it was a strange feeling. He got out the old guitar Sirius had jokingly given him two days earlier (it had been in the house for years, as Lily had once played it) and fingered it gingerly. He'd tried playing a few chords, but couldn't tune it and so it was all a bit off. It felt nice to touch though: soft, probably been used a lot. He smiled at the thought of Lily playing it, a smile plastered on her pretty, pale face, framed by the locks of fiercely red hair. He then heard the fire whoosh, and realised it would be Remus.

"Harry?" He put the guitar down, and loped down the stairs, into the living room.

"Hey." He greeted, and smiled at his old professor.

"Hello." He replied, giving the boy a small smile back. "How are you?"

"I'm fine, thanks. Bit bored, but yeah. You?" Lupin looked pretty ragged, really, but his face was a picture of content happiness, so Harry thought it wise not to mention anything.

"I'm fine, thank you." He said, and walked first into the kitchen. "Mind if I make myself some coffee?" Harry shook his head, shrugging. "Thanks. So, how is everything?"

"Good, I s'pose."

"You suppose?" He grimaced.

"Everything's fine, professor Lupin." He assured him. Remus chuckled.

"Remus will do just fine, Harry. I haven't been your teacher for almost three years."

"Sure, Prof- Remus." He said, laughing a bit. Remus rolled his eyes, in a rather un-Remus-y way. The water boiled, and he finished making the coffee, to then sit down by the table and open the news paper.

"I hope I'm not being too boring. If you fancy doing anything just tell me." He grimaced.

"That's all right. I'm not really in the mood, but it's nice having company." Remus smiled.

"It's nice to see you again, too." He remarked.

"Ditto." They sat in silence for a few moments, both engulfed in his own thoughts. Harry was completely absorbed in imagining what it was Sirius and Dumbledore were talking about. He'd felt like pressing Sirius to take him, but didn't want to irritate the man. He still felt slightly nervous about this whole arrangement. He felt like home, all right, but there was something that still hadn't completely… let go.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Remus' voice snatched him back to reality, and he looked up.

"What? Oh, no, I was just.. thinking." He shrugged at his lame reply.

"Yes I noticed. About what?"

"Stuff. What Dumbledore and Sirius are talking about…" Remus laughed.

"If it concerns you, I'm sure Sirius will share it." He assured him.

"I guess."

"Why don't you get some homework done?" Harry moaned.

"You're kidding? I'm really not in the mood." Remus arched his right eyebrow.

"I don't think you're inclined to feel like it. Basically, you just need to do it."

"I've already done some of it."

"Then why not continue, as you obviously have nothing better to do?" Harry scowled at his wretched logic. "Go on, fetch your stuff." He grumbled, but got up and fetched his books, parchment, quill and ink, before slumping back down at the table. He didn't want to sit alone in his room, not when Remus was there. He opened his Charms textbook and wrote the headline for the essay he needed to write.

"What's the assignment?" Remus enquired, sounding genuinely interested.

"To write an essay on the differences between banishing and concealing objects with magic, and when one should be used and not the other, as well as why you ought to use and not use the other under different circumstances." He chanted back.

"I see. Well, you'd better get started." Harry huffed, but started reading the chapter.

* * *

The flames turned green, and Sirius stepped into the living room. It was half past two, and he could hear his godson and friend in the kitchen. He walked in and joined them.

"Hiya." He greeted, sitting down at the table, smiling.

"Hey!" Harry greeted, and then took a sip of his Butterbeer. They'd just had lunch, and Remus was putting the plates in the sink.

"How was the meeting?" Remus asked.

"All right. We need to talk later." He added.

"Sure."

"And…? What did you talk about?" Harry asked.

"I'm not sure you should know just yet." Sirius frowned. "I'll tell you later." Harry snorted sceptically. "And on a completely different note: Why is Remus washing up?" They looked up and saw Remus washing up the things from lunch. "You do it." Sirius ordered, smirking at Harry.

"Oh come on! He's already started. Besides, I've been doing homework for two hours. Remus is _ruthless_." They heard Remus chuckle.

"It's fine, Padfoot, I'll do it." He said.

"Fine… Buy you are so doing it this evening." He declared, facing Harry.

"No fair! You always do the evening ones!"

"You could've done it now." Sirius shrugged, but his eyes were sparkling with mirth. Harry muttered, but let the matter die. "Come on, mate, it's not the end of the world." Remus finished and put all the plated on the draining board.

"So why don't you do it?" he asked, childishly and cheekily.

"Because that's work for a stubborn teenager." He replied, his eyebrows bobbing up and down. Harry rolled his eyes. "Let me see that essay, mate. I was ace at charms." Harry coughed sceptically, avoided his godfather's hand and then thrust the half finished essay into his waiting hands (he'd proceeded to DADA after getting that far, as defence was a lot more interesting). Sirius scanned the paper, looking rather amused. "What?" Harry defended himself.

"Nothing. It's fine, but seriously Harry, I've never seen such sloppy handwriting." Remus choked and laughed out loud. Harry shot him a murderous glare. "Honestly! Is that an 'a' or a 'u'?" Remus kept laughing. "Sorry, mate." He apologised, slapping Harry's back and handing him the essay back. "Your grandfather used to drive me and your dad crazy with his demand on perfect handwriting. It rubs off." Harry snorted and put his essay back among his other things.

"Padfoot, could I have a word?" Remus asked, a small crease on his forehead.

"Yeah, 'course, you two go along and chat while I'm left out." Harry said, his voice thick with mock drama.

"Stuff it, mate. Go polish your Firebolt, we'll go out for a fly." Harry grimaced, annoyed that Sirius knew him so well, before grabbing his things and charging up the stairs.

* * *

"What's up?" Sirius asked, as they sat down in the living room, Remus on the sofa and Sirius in the armchair. With a nonchalant flick, Remus cast Muffliato at both doors, causing his friend to raise his eyebrows.

"Just a precaution. He's fifteen. He's bound to eavesdrop." Sirius snorted.

"He wouldn't. Anyway, what's it you wanted to talk about?"

"What's it like, between you and Harry?" Sirius was taken aback by the question.

"What's… It's fine. Great, really. I'm so peeved that I wasn't able to do this earlier. Those relatives of his…" He shuddered. "I can't believe that woman is Lily's sister. That darling Lily had a sister like that. She's absolutely _vile_." He was fuming at the mere thought of the blasted woman, who together with her family had made life hell for Harry for fourteen years.

"I know." Remus said calmly. "I know, and I'm sorry I couldn't do anything to help."

"Don't blame yourself, Moony." Sirius sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in an attempt to calm himself. "Sorry. You were saying?"

"I mean… He seems happy."

"I should hope so. I'm bloody delirious." He said seriously.

"I was just… You seem to be getting along…" He struggled for the words.

"Your point?"

"It's just… Your relationship seems like… More of a friendly one, if you like." Sirius frowned, confused.

"Shouldn't it be?"

"No. No, I mean, that's great, but… You're his _dad_ now, Padfoot." He said, looking solemnly into his friend's eyes.

"Moony, we don't really look at it like that…"

"It's got nothing to do with titles or how you look at it." Remus said firmly. "You can't be his friend, Sirius."

"Of course I can!" he argued. "I have been for ages now, and it's working fine."

"So far, yes, just because Harry's too new to all of this to actually step completely out of line."

"And what," Sirius said angrily, "Makes you think he will?"

"He's fifteen! Turning sixteen!" Remus exclaimed. "Come on, you've been sixteen."

"Remus, this is Harry we're talking about. He's like James in a lot of ways, but he is _not_ reckless."

"Sirius." Remus said in a low voice. "He went after the Philosopher's Stone in his first year. He flew a flying car into the Whomping Willow, he rescued you from Dementors, not to mention from me. He competed in the Triwizard Tournament, he went to the Ministry just a few weeks ago, for Merlin's sake!"

"That's not… That's not the same thing!"

"Bloody hell, Padfoot, open your eyes! Sooner or later he's bound to be in the wrong!"

"And I shall address the problem when that day comes!" Sirius almost yelled, getting thoroughly irritating. What was _wrong_ with Remus?

"And what about you calling him 'mate' all the time?" he continued.

"What about it? He doesn't mind."

"Ever met anyone else who calls his son mate?"

"He is not my son!"

"Yes, he is!" They were both standing up, facing each other, Sirius' hands balled into tight fists. "Padfoot, please." Remus pleaded. Sirius slumped back down into the armchair, and Remus sat down again, too. "Just listen for a second. Okay?" Sirius inclined his head quickly. "I'm thrilled that the two of you get along, please understand this. I am so proud that you managed to get this deal, and I think both of you deserved it after all these years." Sirius' face softened slightly. "All I am saying is that you've created a friendly relationship with him, when it should really a father-son relationship." Sirius didn't say anything. "You need to find a balance between being his friend and being his father. You're great with the whole chores and homework thing, but…" He grimaced. Sirius understood. He'd understood as soon as Remus had brought it up, but he didn't want to admit to himself that he'd done something wrong. Everything was going so smoothly, and the last thing he wanted was to completely mess everything up.

He sighed.

"I know." He eventually forced himself to say. "I know. Merlin's pants, have I completely messed up Moony?" he asked, putting his face in his hands. The werewolf smiled.

"Not at all. I managed to save you." Sirius lifted his head just to shoot him a warning glare, and then turned back down.

"What shall I do?" he enquired, his voice muffled.

"That I don't know." Sirius looked up in alarm. "You caused this minor problem, you solve it." Remus smirked.

"Please, Moony."

"I don't know! Talk to him, make sure he hasn't got the wrong message."

"I don't think he's got any message at all." Sirius muttered.

"Just clarify, Sirius." Remus rolled his eyes. "You just can't go on calling him 'mate'. He's not James…"

"I am perfectly aware of who he is, Remus." Sirius said sharply. Remus just eyed him sadly.

"Anyway. What did Dumbledore want?" Sirius had never been so glad to change the subject in his life.

* * *

After dinner that night, Harry took off into the night on his broom for a bit more. Sirius had magically extended the garden to give him some room to fly around in, for which he was very happy. He was zooming through the mild summer air, still slightly annoyed that Sirius hadn't shared the conversation he'd had with Dumbledore. He was certain it had been about him, at least to some extent, and it irritated him to know that they were speaking of him behind his back. Not that it would be anything hurtful, of course. Most likely it had to do with Voldemort. But still… Eventually, it felt as though the air got thicker to fly through, and he realised he must be getting closer to the protective wards. Sighing to himself, he tugged his broom around, and started flying slowly back towards the house as the sun began to slowly disappear behind the trees.

Harry jumped off his broom in front of the back door, and slammed it shut behind him (with a bit more force than he intended) before propping his Firebolt in the corner of the small hall. In the living room he found Sirius, a glass of Firewhiskey in his hand, his eyes glazed.

"Erm… Sirius?" The man startled, and almost dropped his drink.

"Oh. Right, hi Harry. Didn't hear you come in." he said gruffly, looking guiltily at the glass in his hand. "I was just…" Harry rolled his eyes.

"Doesn't matter, Sirius, honestly." He said, smirking at his godfather's sheepish facial expression. Harry dropped down on the couch, placing his right arm comfortably behind his neck. He could feel a kind of tension straining between them. For Harry, it was because of the meeting Sirius had had with the Headmaster. For Sirius, it was the conversation he had had with Remus.

"Listen…"

"Sirius…" They both looked in surprise at each other before starting to laugh. Not that it was particularly funny, but it eased the tension just a tad.

"You go first." Harry said, propping himself up on an elbow to enable him to meet his godfather's eyes. Sirius pinched the bridge of his nose, and placed the glass on the small table beside the chair he was occupying.

"I… Am not really sure how to phrase this." He said, feeling like a complete idiot. "What am I to you?" As soon as he said it, he regretted it, and instantly slapped his hand to his forehead. Harry frowned in slight confusion.

"I'm not sure I know what you mean." He said truthfully. Sirius contemplated for a moment.

"I mean as in, if we ignore me being your godfather, what am I to you?" Harry felt truly puzzled. Sirius was his godfather, and he didn't know else to put it.

"Erm… Not sure how to answer that." He said. "I mean… I dunno."

"Do you see me as a friend?" There. Put bluntly. Harry raised his eyebrows in surprise. He had definitely not expected that.

"Well… Yeah, maybe. Not sure, actually." He added with a wry grimace. Sirius groaned, and Harry immediately realised this wasn't what he wanted to hear.

"Would you mind terribly explaining what's going on?" he asked.

"I fear I may have messed up completely." He said, smiling tiredly at the confused teen.

"Messed up? In what way?"

"With this whole situation." He clarified, gesturing nonchalantly around the room. And it became clear to Harry.

"_No_! No, you have not. You're great, I'm loving this." Sirius chuckled.

"I'm glad you do, and I'm pleased you have such faith in me. But Harry, be honest, do you see me as your father?" This made him feel uncomfortable. It had been one of the things making him uncertain about the adoption. Even though he couldn't remember his parents at all, he was reluctant to let anyone else even try to borrow the role of 'dad' from James.

"Sirius…"

"Don't misunderstand. I don't need you to think of me as your dad. I was just saying, do you think I have been acting like a dad would have?" This conversation is getting really odd, Harry thought fleetingly.

"Well…" he started, not sure whether to be honest or not: he could see the pain in Sirius' eyes.

"Honestly."

"No." he replied. "Not really. At least not like I would have imagined a dad to be." He said, his cheeks flushing slightly. It felt like he was insulting the man, but could hardly lie him right in the face.

"Ah." He answered slowly, once again staring into space.

"Sirius…?" he said timidly.

"You see, I was speaking to Remus earlier." He grinned. "He gave me a telling off for how I've been acting with you." Harry snorted.

"He would." Sirius laughed, in his own barking sort of way.

"Indeed. Anyway… I think he may be right. I want to be your friend, but I've been an idiot to just believe we could live like mates here."

"We haven't been doing that. You gave me rules and everything!" Sirius smirked.

"I did, and that was probably the only good thing I did. Let's just blame the Dementors for my lack in judgement." Harry's blood ran cold for a second at the mention of the horrible creatures.

"I…"

"No, hang on a second. I just need to get this off my chest." He took a breath. "Our relationship is amazing, and I'm so glad that I got the opportunity to get you away from those bloody cretins. But I think, in the end, Moony's right. Even if I'm not your dad, and neither of us sees it that way, I need to act like it. To keep you safe." He grimaced at his awful speech.

"So… What will change?" Harry asked, not knowing if he would like it or not.

"Would you like a sincere answer?"

"That would be nice, yes."

"I haven't the foggiest." He sighed. Harry sniggered. "I'm 36, a bachelor and was never meant to have kids." Harry rolled his eyes at his melodramatic godfather. "I'll ask Remus for help."

"Sirius, it may have escaped your notice, but Professor Lupin hasn't got any kids either." Harry remarked sarcastically.

"No, but he has taught." Sirius replied matter-of-factly. "He'll know better than me."

"Just don't let him talk you into making me go to bed ad eight thirty and wearing a helmet when I fly." Sirius snickered.

"I like those ideas." Harry rolled his eyes again. "We'll figure it out, mate." He bit his tongue. "I mean Harry." Harry startled for a moment, but then shrugged. "So, what was it you wanted to say?" For a second, Harry had completely forgotten he wanted to say anything at all.

"I can't… No, that's right! Dumbledore. What did you talk about?" he asked, and was now sitting up on the couch. Sirius picked up the glass again, and took a sip. It took a few moments before he answered, and Harry didn't say or do anything to encourage him.

"Dumbledore doesn't think you should know just yet." He said eventually, rather hesitantly.

"That's absurd! He always wants to keep me in the dark, he-"

"And I agree." He cut in. This shut Harry up.

"You agree?" Sirius nodded, twirling the glass between his fingers.

"I can't tell you what it's all about… But I just don't think you need to know. Not just yet. Also, I'm not sure I'm the right person to tell you." Harry felt slightly betrayed at this. Yes, Sirius had said he could not be his friend, but Harry had never thought he had it in him to refuse Harry anything. It was the worst feeling: knowing they had spoken about him, and they admitted it, but would not tell him what about.

"Oh come off it Sirius." Harry finally groaned. "I'm not three years old. I hate feeling like you don't think I'm trustable."

"That's not it Harry, and you know it. Dumbledore has… a theory, but it is no more than that just yet."

"He shared it with you." Harry grumbled.

"Yes, he did, because he thought I might be able to help." He replied.

"I could help too, you know. I think it's all a bit unfair that everyone expects me to save the world, but no one will let me know what's going on." He was being childish, he knew it. But it was hard not to be: it was all so bloody irritating!

"Don't be stupid. If Dumbledore thinks you need to know he'll tell you."

"He never tells me anything, Sirius."

"I'm sure that isn't true. I know he'll tell you about this, but not yet. Perhaps when you go back to school…"

"Great, so a few more weeks of blissful ignorance." Commented Harry sarcastically.

"Don't get like this." Sirius said. "It's not my fault. Channel your anger somewhere else, thank you very much."

"Well you won't tell me either, will you?"

"Dumbledore asked me not to."

"And you agreed." He grumbled. Sirius sighed tiredly.

"Harry, listen to me. This is serious stuff. You're only fifteen; it's not fair that you should have to carry this kind of burden. I am not prepared to make it any harder for you."

"You're making it harder by not telling me!" Harry exclaimed. "Do you know what it's like, knowing people know more than you and won't share it?"

"We don't know anything for certain, and until we do, it's nothing you ought to concern yourself with." Harry felt like throwing a cushion at his godfather, in sheer frustration.

"But you've admitted it's serious! Dumbledore wouldn't talk to you if it weren't." Sirius felt his patience draining. He'd forgotten about teen stubbornness.

"Yes, it is rather serious. But I won't budge, you won't be able to convince me to telling you, so I suggest you don't waste your breath." Harry ground his teeth.

"Come on, Sirius…"

"_No_, Harry." He said firmly. "I've said you'll find out sooner or later, but I will not tell you, and that's that." Harry pursed his lips.

"I think I'll go finish that Charms essay." He stated, standing up.

"Harry, come on…"

"See you." He turned and walked out of the room.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hi, and sorry for the long wait! And also a bit for the short-ish chapter, but there you go.**  
**I'm a bit... uncertain about this chapter. Not sure if it's any good.. But please do review! I love honesty. However brutal. But not really...**  
**Try to enjoy!**

**M. Sunshine**

* * *

Harry was fuming, and had to concentrate almost all of his energy on not punching a hole in the parchment upon which he was writing the concluding sentence for his essay. He was thoroughly irritated with everyone babying him, making it look as if he was a young boy who couldn't care for himself, that needed to be kept unknowing for his own good. He scowled at his desk, slamming the quill onto the hard wooden surface and balling his hands into fists. He was just fed up with being treated like a child. He would be sixteen soon, for the _love_ of Merlin! He wanted to scream and rage at Sirius for not seeing this. He knew what his dad and his godfather had been like during their school years, and Sirius' sudden mature action confused him. He wasn't sure if he was glad or annoyed.

Rubbing his eyes tiredly, he picked himself up off the chair and walked hesitantly out of the room. He wasn't sure if Sirius wanted to see him, but he was absolutely starving, as he had not really eaten enough at dinner earlier that evening. He trudged down the stairs, and could hear Sirius speaking in a hushed voice. With Remus, he realised. He wasn't in the least interested in their conversation, and so he walked determinedly past the living room door and into the kitchen. He ran a hand through his hair (a habit he had picked up from his godfather) and grabbed a Butterbeer out of the fridge. After a big mouthful of the chilled and sweet drink he felt his nerves relax just a tad. Sooner or later, he'd have to speak to Sirius, and he really wanted to do it sooner. His wish was granted when the door opened to reveal said man, who stopped dead in his tracks at the sight of his sheepish-looking godson.

"Oh. Hi." He said. Remus coughed something about "forgot something" and disappeared into the hallway.

"Hey." Harry muttered, leaning against the kitchen table, feeling rather awkward.

"You all right?" Sirius asked, a small crease developing on his forehead as he watched the teen.

"Fine." He replied in a clipped voice. Sirius sighed, and sat down at the table. It only took a moment before Harry followed suit and sat opposite him.

"Listen, I'm sorry I was short with you earlier. But you have to understand that what is going is more important than you know." Harry snorted.

"Sirius, I _know_, I-"

"No, Harry. I know you think you understand, but you don't. However much you might resent it, you are still a child. You have no idea how big this problem actually is. I wish I could make you understand, or better yet, get you out of it, but I can't. Therefore, you _have_ to trust me." He held Harry's soft green eyes.

"It just kills me, not knowing." Harry said, his shoulders slumping, all his previous anger gone, and replaced by hopelessness. Sirius face softened into a small smile.

"I know kiddo. Somewhere in my mind I want to tell you, but a bigger part of me doesn't think you're ready to know. Don't worry, you'll find out soon enough." Harry leaned forwards, placed his arms on the table and his head on his arms. Sirius rolled his eyes at his dramatic ways. "Cheer up, mate." He said, nudging the boy.

"I want to know." He muttered.

"Harry…"

"I understand what you are saying, Sirius. Truly, I do. I understand the gravity of the situation, but I am failing to see how it would hurt to tell me." His voice was muffled, but Sirius could hear the determination in the words.

"Fine then. You understand. That still doesn't mean you will benefit from knowing.

"And will I benefit from not knowing?" he said, looking up.

"Yes. You will have one less thing to worry about." Harry made a frustrated noise.

"But I won't! It just gives me the chance to worry about something I don't know anything about! Do you honestly think I won't worry just because I don't know the character of the problem?"

"Harry." Sirius said. "You want to know, and that's fine. But I have said it several times, and I will say it again: I am not telling you. Professor Dumbledore will be the person to tell you, and he will do so when he feels the time is right. Until then I suggest that you don't waste your energy."

"It makes _no_ sense!"

"It makes perfect sense. I am not telling you, and you might as well stop begging me." Sirius was beginning to get annoyed with his godson's persistent questioning. He wouldn't waver: Dumbledore had told him not to tell Harry, and for the time being, he was inclined to agree with his old Headmaster.

"Sirius, come on, just tell me, I won't-"

"Stop asking, Harry James." He said, suddenly feeling rather irritated. Harry recoiled at the use of his middle name. "I have told you that I will not share the reason for my conversation with the Headmaster, and that is that."

"Sirius, I…" His voice faltered. He was a bit miffed by his godfather's stern words, and didn't know what to make of them.

"No more questions, or I will seriously lose my patience." He stated firmly. "Are we clear on that?"

"Yes, sir." Harry said, his eyes wide. Sirius almost choked, but managed to not show any other signs of shock at the address.

"Good." Remus poked his head into the kitchen.

"Am I welcome?" he asked, a small smile playing on his weathered face.

"Sure, Moony." Sirius said, standing up to put the kettle on. Remus entered and sat down at the table, seemingly completely oblivious to the tension in the air. Handing his friend the cup of tea, Sirius then took his place again. Harry felt very uncomfortable at the silence in the room, but didn't want to be the one to break it. Sirius eventually cast a glance at the clock on the counter, which showed quarter past eleven.

"Harry, why don't you go upstairs and have a shower before you go to bed?" he said. Harry didn't believe the words he was hearing. He opened his mouth to protest, but no sound came out. Remus raised an eyebrow at him. Feeling anger and hurt bubble up again, he rose suddenly and stalked out of the room, slamming his bedroom door behind him. He threw himself onto the bed and smashed a pillow over his face, breathing deeply. He couldn't remember the last time he'd felt so frustrated. Asking was out of the game, and there was hardly any other way to get Sirius to reveal what he'd been talking about. Dumbledore wouldn't be any easier; the sneaky old man would only tell him when he felt it was needed. And no one else knew! Groaning into the pillow, he rolled over, and brushed it off as he did so. With his hair standing in every possible direction, he left his bedroom and went into the bathroom.

After having a quick (and, really, quite refreshing) shower, Harry headed back for his room, and resisted the urge to slam the door again. Flopping back onto the bed, he closed his eyes tightly and breathed deeply. It had been a long day, and he could feel his eyes stinging, but he didn't at all feel like going to sleep. He was far too angry and confused by his godfather's words. Surely Sirius would come to his senses? Why did they all believe he was a little child, who was safest if kept in the dark? He could _help_, why were they all failing to see that? With a snort, he pulled his glasses off his nose and placed them on the table beside the head of the bed, and then just lay back on top of the covers. Closing his eyes, he tried desperately to push all thoughts of Voldemort, masked men and snakes out of his mind and just relax. Easier said (or thought, for that matter) than done…

* * *

The next day was all together rather awkward. Harry went about doing some chores and his homework, while enduring Sirius' annoyed yet slightly concerned looks. It wasn't exactly Harry's fault. Sirius could just tell him. He snorted to himself as he sat down on the couch after dinner, opening his Herbology book in an attempt to avoid conversation. Unfortunately, Sirius entered when he'd finished the washing up, sat down in the armchair and waited. He knew his godfather knew that he was stalling, but still didn't move the book. After almost two full minutes of tense silence, Sirius cleared his throat, and so Harry lowered the book.

"Harry… I think we need to talk about this." He started, with a strange tone. He felt slightly uncomfortable about bringing the subject up, as he knew it wasn't one Harry would be able to discuss.

"Is there anything to talk about?" he retorted coolly. It was like a stab, hearing Harry's nonchalant reply, but somehow, Sirius expected it was feigned.

"Yes. As a matter of fact, there is quite a lot to talk about. Let's start with making one thing perfectly clear. I will not let you know what my meeting with the Headmaster was about. I am sure you know this now, but I just wish to make it clear as crystal. All right?" Harry nodded stiffly. "Secondly, I am getting tired of this attitude." Harry raised his eyebrows in response. "There we go." His godfather said, wafting his hand at him. "We're both still trying to fall into a pattern here, and get used to one another, but can you at least try to treat me like you would your father? Or if that doesn't work, an uncle, or even a teacher." Harry snorted.

"Would you like me to call you Uncle or sir, then?"

"Will you stop that! For the love of Godric, Harry, would it kill you to show some respect? Is this how you treat your professors?" Harry shrugged. "Well?"

"No." he replied reluctantly.

"I should hope not, because believe me, you'll regret it if you do." Harry was still having trouble seeing Sirius as a father figure. Everything was spinning in his head.

"Can I ask you something?"

"May you. And yes." Harry rolled his eyes.

"When you were fifteen, what was your biggest problem?" Sirius felt surprised at the question.

"Come again?"

"What was your biggest problem? Was it making sure your hair looked all right? Or that you had at least three girlfriends?"

"Harry…" Sirius growled warningly.

"No, I'm serious." He looked at Sirius. "Because, you see, _my_ biggest problem is that the whole Wizarding World expects me to save them from an evil sorcerer, who stops at nothing to gain power." Sirius stared back.

"Harry…"

"Do you really think I am naïve enough to think that I can have a life like any other kid? Do you really think I don't feel, every day, a burning desire to kill Voldemort with my own hands? He killed my parents, Sirius. Just like that." He snapped his fingers, his eyes still not wavering. "And he is killing people still. I won't have it. Therefore, no, I don't see how telling me about this new development would hurt, because hey, sooner or later it'll be me standing in front of his pale face and red eyes, getting ready to save the world or die trying." He finished off, feeling slightly out of breath as he'd put quite some determination behind his words. For a moment, it looked like Sirius was going to walk out. Then like he was going to lecture. And eventually, his face softened.

"I'm sorry." Again Harry raised his eyebrows. Never before had he heard that tone of voice. "I'm sorry you feel this way, and yes, maybe you're right, and I'm truly glad you've explained this to me. Don't think the past doesn't haunt me, Harry. Sometimes it's like I can feel James is in the room, or smell Lily's perfume." Harry's heard throbbed. "I'm sorry if I've made you feel forgotten or belittled in any way. I just…" He pinched his nose, like he always did when in deep thought or contemplation. "I just can't tell you." This time, he didn't sound forceful or determined, but sad and slightly apologetic, which made Harry's anger thin out a bit. "But believe me it's not because I think you're too young or not ready. I just don't think you need something else to think about. Yes, you know something is going on, but if you knew what was going on, trust me, you'd be having another bazillion questions popping up." Harry struggled for a moment and then sighed, finally accepting that Dumbledore would tell him sooner or later (though, of course, he would do everything in his power to ensure it was sooner).

"Fine."

"Fine? Just like that?" Harry grinned.

"Yeah, just like that. Honestly, I'm tired of being pissed off. So yes." Sirius breathed out and rolled his eyes.

"You are the most stubborn person I know, so I'm glad you've relented." He paused for a moment. "Actually, no, your dad was worse." Harry chuckled.

"Oh, really?"

"Oh, you _would_ not believe it. He would bug me about what I'd got him for his birthday for weeks. Sometimes I hadn't even thought of it yet. In the end, I usually just told him, just to get him to stop nagging me." Harry laughed out loud.

"Was mum like that too?"

"Definitely. That's one thing they had in common. Other than that, they were pretty different people. James was always happy-go-lucky and bright, never really taking anything seriously. Sort of forgot about people's feeling sometimes. Never with you or Lily though. He was a right sentimental bloke when it came to you." Harry rolled his eyes. "Your mum, on the other hand, was really gentle and caring. Saw good in everyone." He smiled fondly. "I miss them."

"Yeah…"

"And I'm sorry I got to spend so much time with them when they were cruelly removed from you."

"S'okay. Not your fault." Sirius didn't reply. Didn't voice his disagreement, that he actually thought he was at fault. He remained silent, a sad smile still on his lips.


	7. Chapter 7

**Okay. I feel this chapter sucks, like, big time. At least compared to the earlier ones. I beg you to forgive me, I may revise it later.**  
**It's been too long! But I've been working with a number of fics as well as a number of originals and school work. So I'm excused. Meh.**  
**Please review!**

**M. Sunshine**

* * *

Just about a week later, Harry received a letter from Ron. Hedwig nipped him affectionately in the ear as he stroked her back while reading the messy handwriting.

_Harry!_

_I guess you're having a good time at home, now that you're living with Sirius, but Mum said you could come over here for a while if you like. I mean, you might not want to at all, but it'd be cool. Send a letter back quick._

_Ron_

Good old Ron, Harry thought with a smirk. He'd love to go and visit him. But on the other hand… Frowning slightly, he gripped the letter tightly and made his way downstairs. Sirius was sitting in the kitchen, scratching away at a letter. Probably to Remus, Harry thought.

"Hey, Sirius?" His godfather looked up at the address, and smiled at his godson.

"Hey, mate. Harry. How're you doing?"

"I'm good. Listen, I got a letter from Ron just now."

"Oh yeah? What did it say?"

"Well he was wondering whether I could stay there for a few days. Y'know, like I've done in past summers." Sirius put his quill down and leaned back.

"Of course you can. It's hardly something you have to ask about." He looked at Harry for a moment. "But as you did ask, I'm guessing you're not certain if you want to go or not." Damn.

"Well… Before it was sort of a relief going there…"

"But now it's more like actually leaving home?" Harry nodded. "You don't have to go."

"But I want to. I mean, I want to see him."

"Why don't you invite him here then?" The simplicity of the solution left Harry speechless. Invite Ron. Why hadn't he thought of that? Sirius smirked. "Yes, you may have your friends here, you nutter." He flexed his fingers and continued writing his letter. With his head bowed, he said:

"Write to him now. Check when he can come." Harry stared for a few seconds and then turned and walked slowly back to his room. While living with the Dursleys, inviting his friends was simply out of the question, for several reasons. First of all, his Aunt and Uncle would never have let them near the house. Second, Harry wouldn't have wanted them to see how he lived, what he had to cope with every summer. No, it had been, in a way, easier to endure it alone and then have fun when he spent a few weeks at the Weasley's. He sat down by his desk and unrolled a piece of blank parchment. With his quill dipped into the dark ink, he hovered above the material for a few moments before starting to write.

As soon as he'd finished, Hedwig soared out of the window, the complete letter attached to her leg. Harry smiled crookedly and then plodded back downstairs, his stomach making rather clear that it was time for lunch. Apparently, Sirius was thinking the same thing: as Harry entered the kitchen, Sirius opened the fridge and frowned.

"Lunch?" Harry asked casually.

"Yes, I'm starving." He replied "But…" He peeked inside the fridge again. "We're out of… like, everything." Harry rolled his eyes.

"You mean you didn't shop at _all_?"

"Hey!" He exclaimed, affronted.

"But you didn't." Sirius huffed.

"No. Sorry. I'm an arse. But will you be an angel and go buy some stuff?" Harry choked.

"Anything for you not to call me an angel." Sirius smirked, and started scribbling a small list.

"Here you go." Harry grabbed it and stuffed it into his pocket, along with the twenty pound note Sirius handed him.

"Thanks. I'll be back in a few."

"Sure. Be quick. And just go to the local." Harry rolled his eyes again.

"I'm not ten years old, Sirius."

"I know, but… Just be careful, yeah?" Harry kept from snorting, and nodded.

"Whatever." He grabbed his trainers and then left the house. The sun was shining brightly, and Harry shoved his hands deep into his pockets and strolled along. He didn't really go outside often, mostly because Sirius was sort of overprotective. It was nice being alone for a while, even if it was just while walking to the shop. After having walked for about five minutes, Harry noticed someone was following him. He felt his heart thud just a tad quicker, but forced himself to remain calm. The man had been walking after him for a while, and the way he looked away when Harry glanced over his shoulder made him certain. With a few deep breaths, he slowed his pace, and carefully edged his hand closer to his wand. The move was ever so subtle, but in his peripheral vision he saw the man behind him whip something out of his jacket, and everything went black as a shooting pain erupted in his right leg. In what felt like slow motion, his knees gave way and he fell forward, landing with an awful crunch on the warm tarmac.

* * *

When Harry regained conscience, he immediately sucked in a deep breath at the pain he was feeling in his right calf. He bit his lip and pressed his eyes together when a voice said:

"He's awake!" People starting moving about around him, and he cracked an eye.

"Harry?" He recognised his godfather's voice straight away. He groaned and moved his head a little in response. "Are you in pain?" He managed a small nod. "Madam Pomfrey…" Sirius' voice was dripping in concern and fear. Harry wished he could say something, but the pain was still gnawing at him.

"Calm down." Came the mediwitch's brusque voice. A moment later a phial was pressed to his lips, and a bitter potion slid down his throat. It burned uncomfortably, but seconds later the pain in his leg vanished, and he relaxed his whole body in relief. Cracking in eye, he realised he was in the Hogwarts infirmary. Sirius was leaning over him, his face a frown. Behind him was Remus, also looking like he was about to faint. Madam Pomfrey was rummaging about in her office, and Professor Dumbledore was sitting in an armchair a few metres away.

Sirius surprised them all by gathering his scrawny godson in a tight hug for a few moments, breathing in the scent of his hair.

"Bloody hell. You scare the life out of me." He let go and sat up. "You okay?" Sirius enquired.

"'M fine… And get _off_." Sirius was sitting on his bed, his face just a bit too close to Harry's for the latter's liking. The older man smiled faintly and stood again. "What happened?"

"You… You were shot." Harry sat up with a start. "Whoa, lie back down, mate." A firm hand pushed him back down onto the pillows.

"_Shot?_" He spluttered.

"Yes, in your leg."

"Oh, not shit Sherlock." Harry grumbled in response. Sirius smiled again, thankful that he was well enough to be sarcastic. "And why the hell was that?"

"We don't know…" At this point, the Headmaster stood and walked with graceful steps over to the foot of Harry's bed.

"Harry, did you see the person who did this?" He shook his head.

"No, not really. He was behind me."

"So you're certain it was a he?"

"Yes, I noticed that much." Harry nodded.

"Well. I shall contact the Muggle authorities." Harry raised his eyebrows but kept silent as Dumbledore smiled and then left the infirmary.

"Are you all right?" Remus piped up.

"Yeah, sure. I've just got a hole in my leg, but other than that I'm fine."

"You haven't got a hole in your leg." Remus retorted with a small eye-roll. "Madam Pomfrey fixed that up as soon as you got here."

"Then why did it still feel like a knife was stabbing me when I woke up?"

"You were sore, I expect. The wound is healing, and there's a bandage on it, but you can take a look if you like." Harry frowned slightly, almost disappointed with the lack of evidence. He pulled the covers off his elevated leg. True enough: it was covered in a bright white bandage, and was obviously not bleeding enough for it to show. He sighed.

"Well, I suppose it's something." Sirius snorted.

"You should be grateful we got to you so quickly."

"About that. How did you know where I was? And what had happened?"

"When you fell over, you pulled your wand out. I suppose it reacted when you hit the ground, because it blew up a telephone box on the pavement." Harry's eyes widened. "It's all right, though. The Ministry wizards were there seconds after us and helped with memory charms. Everything's back to normal."

"Yeah, right. Like anything can ever be normal."

"You know what I mean."

"But… I used magic?" Sirius nodded.

"Not intentionally though. It's all been sorted out. Now, what _you_ need to do," He added pointedly, "Is rest."

"How long have I been out?" Harry asked, completely ignoring his godfather's not so subtle order.

"It's half past five now." Remus supplied. "So a fair few hours."

"Right. Any chance of some food?" Sirius couldn't hold back a laugh, and with a swish of her hand, Madam Pomfrey conjured a tray for him, laden with sandwiches and pumpkin juice.

"Thanks." Harry smiled at her. She gave a curt nod and then bustled away into her office. Harry didn't mind. She'd always been sort of short.

"I'm glad to see your appetite wasn't affected." Sirius remarked with a raised eyebrow as Harry began shuffling the food in.

"I haven' eaten since bweakfasht." Harry replied through a full mouth. Remus rolled his eyes, and then clapped his hands together.

"Listen, I really don't want to seem like an arse, but I have some work to do."

"Work?" Harry enquired, to which his godfather's friend smiled.

"Yes, work. Dumbledore asked me to come and help Professor Flitwick with Charms classes. Apparently, he got Dragon pox some week back. He's all right, but I suppose Dumbledore's worried."

"That's wicked." Harry smiled. "I mean, that you got work. Not about Flitwick." Remus smiled faintly.

"I'm glad you think so."

"Yeah, 'cause he wouldn't accept at first." Sirius snorted.

"Really?"

"Yep. Said he could hardly go back now that the whole school knows he's a…" He trailed off at the sight of Remus' glare.

"About that." Harry said. "Will the parents be okay with it?"

"Dumbledore merely said he'd 'Sort it out'. What he meant by that, we may never know." A snort escaped Harry.

"He would do something like that." He nodded in agreement.

"So if you're not too offended, I shall go and start preparing some classes." He winked at the boy and then left him alone with his godfather (apart from the Mediwitch, still in her office behind a closed door). Sirius sighed.

"I can't believe how a perfectly normal day turned into this." He said, rubbing his eyes. Harry was about to answer when the large doors were flung open. He spun around, and was met by his best friend loping inside.

"HARRY! What-" he broke off and looked at his friend's bandaged leg and bruised face, his own eyes widening. "Bloody hell, mate." He said in a low voice, and approached his bed. When he sat down, his mother and father came running in, too.

"Ronald!" Mrs Weasley admonished. "You weren't supposed to go inside."

"Sorry mum." Ron said automatically. "What the hell happened?" At this point, both Mr and Mrs Weasley had reached them, and were greeting Sirius.

"I was going to pick up some stuff and someone shot me." Harry said casually, as if it was the most normal thing in the world to have happened.

"Someone what?" His red-headed friend had a frown on his face, looking rather perplexed.

"Shot me. Like, with a gun?" He really didn't know how to explain it. Thankfully, Mr Weasley stepped in.

"It's a Muggle weapon." He said, not with the usual enthusiasm he had when speaking about Muggle objects.

"What kind of weapon?" Ron asked.

"It's… Correct if I'm wrong Harry, but it's made of metal and contains a bullet. I don't know how it works, but you push a button…"

"Pull the trigger." Harry interjected.

"Right, that's the one. And it fires the bullet at you. At one hell of a speed, too."

"So you got the thing on your leg?"

"Not just on it. _In_ it."

"It went _inside_ your leg?" he exclaimed.

"Yes, bullets tend to do that."

"Merlin's pants, Harry…" He grinned a bit.

"It's okay though. It still hurts, but it's all right."

"Yeah, yeah." Ron said absent-mindedly. "Hey! I got your letter."

"Glad to hear it."

"But you sure? I can come stay?"

"'Course you can." It was Sirius who answered, smiling.

"Wicked! How about tomorrow?" Sirius coughed.

"In case you hadn't noticed, Harry isn't really fit for hosting a party at the moment."

"Oh… I thought Pomfrey fixed it?"

"Well, almost, but this was a Muggle thing. She could only do so much."

"Right…" He looked a bit miffed about not being able to come stay with his mate straight away. Sirius chuckled.

"I'll owl you as soon as he's up and about."

"Come on, Ronnie." Mrs Weasley said.

"Mum." He muttered.

"Oh, right, sorry." She said hastily. "Now come along."

"I'll see you around." Harry said, waving as his friend left. "Well… That was weird."

"I've seen worse." His godfather assured him.

* * *

The next day, Dumbledore came into the infirmary with the announcement that he had clarified the "mistake".

"Mistake?" Sirius asked, frowning. Dumbledore conjured a plush armchair and seated himself comfortably in it before speaking again.

"Mistake, yes. It seems," he said, lacing his fingers together, "Harry was shot by a policeman." Harry almost choked on his own tongue.

"A _POLICEMAN_?" he yelled.

"Shush." Sirius said, though he too was looking a bit outraged. More than a bit, maybe.

"Yes." Dumbledore said, completely untouched by Harry's outburst. "Allow me to explain."

"Please do." Sirius said.

"First…" The Headmaster reached into his midnight blue robes and retrieved what looked like a large photograph. Harry couldn't see what or who was on it, but it wasn't moving so he understood it was a Muggle version anyway. "Take a look at this." He handed it to Harry's godfather, who took it and held it up. While he studied it, his eyes became wider and his mouth opened slightly.

"Unbelievable."

"What is it?" Harry asked, craning his neck to see better. But Sirius didn't acknowledge him.

"Who is this?"

"His name is Jack Allen." Dumbledore replied. "He's wanted for the murder of a young woman."

"How old is he?"

"Eighteen." Sirius grimaced.

"That's sick.

"Can I see the bloody picture?" Harry said exasperatedly.

"_May you_. And yes, here you go." Harry all but snatched it from his godfather's hand, and felt his own eyes widen as he saw it. The photograph was a mug shot of a young man. He had messy, dark brown, almost black hair, wore glasses and had blue eyes. Just looking at him quickly, one would have thought it was Harry. Apart from the eye-colour and the fact that his jaw was a bit wider than Harry's, they looked almost exactly the same.

"That's creepy." He managed.

"My sentiments exactly." Dumbledore nodded and took the picture back. "Now, the man who shot you was a police officer looking for young Mr Allen. Understandably, he was certain it was you he'd seen, and when you reached for your wand he thought you were pulling a gun. And so, naturally, he did what he thought necessary."

"Yeah. Shooting a guy who was going to buy bread." Harry snorted. Dumbledore smiled serenely.

"Well, I have fixed things with the Minister and their Prime Minister. Though I have to say, Fudge was rather struggling."

"He never liked me. Remember that hearing?" Dumbledore chuckled.

"I think he might be afraid of you." He said, making the boy frown. "Well, I shan't bore you anymore, young man. I do have an empty school to run, after all." He winked at Harry and then left, just as swiftly as he had arrived. Harry groaned and threw himself back down on the bed. This was all such a mess.


	8. Chapter 8

**It's been FOR EVER. Sorry. SORRY. Erm. Yeah. Hope everyone like this, and I shall try my hardest to get chapters up a bit quicker.**

**M. Sunshine**

* * *

Not until the following evening would Madam Pomfrey allow Harry to go back home. After having slept soundly (courtesy of one of Pomfrey's Dreamless sleep potions) he had felt brilliant, and was rather annoyed that she hadn't let him move an inch from the bed. When she finally (though reluctantly) declared him one hundred per cent healed, he'd basically jumped out of the bed and dragged Sirius to the fireplace.

"Bloody hell, Harry, calm down." Sirius said, pulling free from his grasp.

"I want to get home." the teen declared firmly, folding his arms over his chest as he stood by the fireplace in Pomfrey's office.

"I know, I do too. But I have to go speak to Dumbledore first." Harry groaned. "Come on, it won't take long. You go and visit Hagrid or something, and I'll come get you once I'm done."

"I can't come?" Harry enquired, with raised eyebrows. How often would his godfather meet the Headmaster without including him? It gave him that feeling of being left out, like he couldn't handle hearing the truth.

"No, you can't." Sirius replied instantly. "Nothing important and it won't take long, as I said."

"If it's nothing important, then how come I can join in?" Harry asked, narrowing his eyes. Sirius heaved an exasperated sigh.

"I don't fancy going over this again, Harry. Now, I have to go. You can either stay here or head down to Hagrid's, your choice."

"But-"

"I said no," Sirius frowned. "And I mean it. See you in a few." With that, he turned and swiftly left the infirmary. At first, Harry thought he'd stay in the Hospital Wing and sulk, just because of it. But he decided it would be far more fun to pay Hagrid a visit, so he followed Sirius, and then turned towards the stairs. It took some time to hurry down the four flights of them, but he eventually reached the front doors, and swung them open. The sun was setting, but it was still warm and a light breeze ruffled his hair as he started down the lawns towards the gamekeeper's hut. Fang was lying on the doorstep, snoozing, but his master was nowhere to be seen. Harry frowned, and gave the massive dog a scratch on his head before banging on the door. There was no answer, something that made Harry even more confused. He turned and peered through the small window. Though the view was half blocked by a giant pot, he was certain no one was inside.

"Where's Hagrid, eh?" he said softly, crouching down to stroke the dog gently. Fang sighed but didn't move. Harry stood up again, looking towards the dark forest. Was it possible that Hagrid had gone in there, to help a hurt animal or something, he pondered. But he'd have brought Fang with him, wouldn't he? So Harry had to decide what to do. Head back to the castle and wait for Sirius, or go looking for Hagrid. Of course, the sensible thing would be to head back and just inform his godfather that he couldn't find the gamekeeper. Dumbledore would surely know where he was. On the other hand, his curiosity and annoyance with Sirius was currently outweighing his sense, and he automatically started for the forest. Fang whimpered and stood, trotting after him. As soon as he'd passed the outer trees the darkness enfolded him, the massive treetops blocking out all sunshine. It was rather spooky, the change from warm and light to cool and dark in a few steps. Harry hugged himself briefly to try and warm up, before strolling casually along. Not ten minutes after he'd entered the forest did he regret his decision. He had no way of knowing if Hagrid was even in the woods, and he was well aware of the numbers of strange creatures lurking in dark corners. The huge dog whined again, and Harry absentmindedly placed a comforting hand on the animal's head.

"Where _is_ your master at?" he said quietly, stroking the short fur. Fang merely cocked his head. Harry sighed, patted the head a last time before turning. He hadn't had time to get too far in, yet there was no sign of the end of the vegetation. Scowling, he started walking with cautious steps, listening intently to the muffled noises around him. The occasional bird screeched, but only briefly. Frankly, they were a bit of a comfort. Proof that there was _some_ life there. He kept walking, freaked out by the odd silence. Taking longer steps he hurried in what he hoped was the direction of Hagrid's hut. Suddenly, he heard a thick twig breaking, and he spun around, staring into the misty, grey scene. Nothing. He reached for his wand before remembering he didn't have it. And in any case, he wasn't allowed to use it. But this was Hogwarts grounds, and in a life-threatening situation he would-

"Harry Potter?" Almost falling over, he jumped just about two feet into the air and turned again. There, standing right by a thick tree trunk, was a centaur. And Harry was relieved to recognise him as Firenze.

"Oh. Hi." The centaur frowned at him, whipping his tail back and forth.

"What are you doing in here?" he enquired, his rumbling voice booming in the otherwise quiet surroundings. Harry shrugged a bit.

"I was looking for Hagrid." Firenze snorted, a very horse-like thing to do for someone like him.

"You shouldn't have come in here alone." He stated firmly. "It's dangerous, remember?" Harry rolled his eyes a bit, acting a lot more confident than he actually was.

"Yeah, I know. I'm on my way back." he assured him.

"I'll walk with you." Harry was glad for the company, and nodded mutely before walking beside the centaur along the non-existent path.

"These are especially rocky times." Firenze said. "Dumbledore is on his way to finding them, I think. I was asked several times for my opinion. I must say, it is an honour to be regarded as a valuable asset to the Headmaster." Harry nodded along, before realising what he'd said. _Finding them? Finding _what_?_

"Excuse me, but finding what?" The centaur looked down at him, and Harry thought he looked almost surprised. Harry cracked his knuckles, waiting expectantly as Firenze contemplated something.

"The Headmaster has not told you?" He eventually asked, choosing an easier route. Of course, Harry hadn't a clue what he was talking about, so it felt kind of difficult to answer the question. He grimaced.

"I guess not, seeing as I dunno what you're talking about."

"Then I really am at no liberty to talk about it." _Okay, this is getting thoroughly annoying,_ Harry thought, feeling his wretched anger bubble up in the pit of his stomach.

"Honestly, Firenze, that's the kind of answer that made me come into this damn forest in the first place. Not a kid, remember?" he said, in a voice he thought sounded pretty convincing. The centaur sighed, and fingered one of the arrows for his bow before speaking again.

"Although it really is for Professor Dumbledore to tell you this, I do agree with you: you are not a child, and considering what they all expect you to eventually do you should know." Hearing this from someone made Harry feel exceptionally light-hearted and he smiled gratefully.

"The Headmaster has, most likely, figured out why He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named seems to be difficult to… remove." _Well that was a straightforward way of putting things._

"Okay…? And what does that mean?" Harry asked, trying hard not to sound awfully rude.

"I believe it was in your second year that you entered the Chamber of Secrets and destroyed the diary, am I correct?" Harry nodded in affirmation. "It was rather lucky you had a Basilisk tooth close by, as trying to destroy it with most other implements would have failed." Harry raised his eyebrows.

"It was just a diary." Firenze chuckled, something between a low laugh and a neigh.

"It was a lot more than a diary. That book was a Horcrux." Harry looked lost at the name.

"A what?"

"A Horcrux." The centaur repeated with gravity. "They are foul things. One can, by some very dark magic I might add, contain a piece of one's soul in an object, so that should the body be harmed, the soul lives on. Clearly speaking, you cannot die." Harry's blood practically ran cold. Voldemort had Horcruxes? He couldn't die?

"But I did destroy the diary." Firenze smiled warmly.

"Yes, you did. Not a lot of things can do that, but Basilisk venom is one of them."

"So Voldemort had a Horcrux?" Harry asked, hoping for a good answer. Firenze smile turned sad.

"He didn't _have_ one. He _has_ several." was his quiet reply. Ahead, Harry could see the outlines of Hagrid's hut, but his mind was drifting. Voldemort had more than one Horcrux. He couldn't die. Could not be killed.

"But does that mean-"

"No, Harry. He can be defeated." Firenze stated with vigour. "It'll just be a bit more difficult than killing an ordinary wizard." He spoke of murder as though it was going for a stroll. Of course, talking like that was just in his nature. Harry knew for a fact that the centaur was a very gentle and kind being.

"But…" Harry frowned. "How the hell do we find them then? Because, I suppose in order to kill him we have to get to all of them and destroy them."

"Yes, you need to find them. And how to do so, I don't know. You'll have to speak to the Headmaster." They arrived outside the hut, and Harry saw Hagrid and Sirius, both looking rather concerned.

"Brilliant." He muttered. They hadn't seen him yet, and Firenze snorted amusedly.

"Stay away from the forest." He said, nodded and then trotted back in between the trees. Sirius turned around, and looked immensely relieved upon spotting his godson. _You'd think I was gone for hours_, Harry thought irritably as he walked over to them.

"Harry!" He said, placing his hands heavily on Harry's shoulders. "Where the hell have you been?" he exclaimed, his grey eyes stormy, still with a worried edge to them.

"I was looking for Hagrid." he replied, avoiding his eyes.

"Hagrid was in the castle, not in the forest." Sirius said, eyeing him suspiciously.

"Well, no shit Sherlock." he replied sarcastically. "I realised he wasn't in there…"

"You went into the forest?"

"Yup."

"Harry, are you out of your mind? Alone? Without your wand?"

"It's not like I could have used it anyway." he said defensively.

"You didn't even know if Hagrid was in there or not!" He caught sight of Fang. "He couldn't have been, as he always brings Fang! For Merlin's sake!"

"Will you relax? I'm fine. I met Firenze, he walked me back." Mentioning the centaur, Harry felt the irritation with his godfather rise. Annoyance stemming from no one telling him anything, having to hear it from a centaur he barely knew.

"You met Firenze?" Sirius asked, his frown still etched firmly in place.

"Yeah. Had a rather nice chat." At this point, he noticed Hagrid staring at him, looking almost nervous. Fang had scurried over to his master, and was sitting awkwardly at his side. Harry looked back to Sirius, realising it was sort of rude to look the other way.

"Did you, now?" Harry couldn't believe how unfair Sirius was being about all of it. Yes, it had been stupid to go into the forest, he'd realised this quite quickly. But he wasn't hurt, everything was fine. Well, everything except for the fact that _no one had told him Voldemort was pretty much immortal! _

"Yes, thanks." he said. "It was quite informative." His godfather looked almost beside himself, but instead of answering, he let Harry go and turned to Hagrid.

"We'll be leaving now. Thank you." Hagrid just waved a bit, and Sirius beckoned for Harry to follow as he marched back towards the castle. The put-out teen had no option but to walk after him.

* * *

Harry chewed his dinner slowly, glancing up at his uncharacteristically quiet godfather. Sirius had barely said a word since they'd Flooed back home, and Harry was beginning to feel worried. Was he still upset with his going into the Forbidden Forest? Of course, Harry couldn't blame him, but he did think Sirius might be overreacting if this was the case. He wasn't eleven years old; he was perfectly capable of minding himself, thank you very much. Harry was still a bit indecisive about how to approach the subject about the Horcruxes with Sirius, too. He wasn't at all ready to tell him he knew about them yet, especially not as Sirius seemed to think he was some young child.

Sirius rubbed his forehead and finished his Butterbeer before standing up to put his dishes in the sink.

"This was, erm, great." Harry said, in an attempt to start a civil conversation. "Thanks." he added, still disconcerted by Sirius' silence.

"Mm-hmm." was the subtle reply as the sink was filled with warm water and a mass of bubbles. The boy sighed and pushed his plate away from him.

"Listen, about earlier-"

"Would you bring your plate over if you're done?" he interrupted, in a soft yet firm voice. Startled, Harry raised his eyebrows, but did as he was asked. As soon as his godfather's hands were busy scrubbing the dishes, Harry leaned against the table and shoved his hands loosely into the pockets of his jeans.

"Honestly, Sirius, I'm sorry." he said. "It was stupid; I dunno why I did it." The older wizard didn't react at first, but after a few moments he flicked his hands to get rid of the foam and turned around, eyeing the scrawny boy intently.

"Yes. It was the most stupid thing you've done in a while, I'd say." he said, in a calm and low voice, completely unlike his usual loud and cheerful way of speaking.

"Yeah…"

"Really, Harry, what the hell goes on in that supposedly bright head?" he exclaimed, his grey eyes annoyed but still carrying that concerned-godfather-hint. Harry had the modesty to look embarrassed, but still felt the familiar flicker of annoyance at his godfather's light scolding.

"Dunno…"

"No, obviously not." The man shook his head. "You scared the life out of me, you know. For about twenty minutes, no one knew where you were." Harry didn't think it very wise to point out that twenty minutes wasn't actually that long. "I checked with Hagrid, who hadn't seen you, nor had anyone else. You just wandered over the grounds and then disappeared. I mean, are you out of your mind? There are Death Eaters actively trying to get to you, Harry. Voldemort doesn't take breaks." The harsh words sent shivers down Harry's spine, and he wanted nothing but to coil up and hide away.

"You need to get it into your head that you are not invincible." _Okay, that hurt._ "You're brilliant, and a very smart and brave young wizard. But you're _kid_, for Merlin's sake! Stop putting yourself into danger like this. I won't lose you to something as ridiculous as that. Use your head!" It felt like Sirius was verbally smashing something heavy into his head. Not that he was wrong. Harry knew he had a point, but this whole having-a-parent-that-worries-thing was new to him, and he wasn't quite sure how to handle it. Yes, there were other people who worried about him, people he loved and didn't want to leave, but he hadn't ever truly considered that it would hurt them when he went off on his save-the-day-escapades. Staring into Sirius' face, he could see that he wasn't annoyed with Harry doing what he wanted: he was angry that he had put himself in danger, and that he hadn't thought first. _Huh. That _is_ a bit childish. _

He blinked several times, and his shoulders slumped.

"I'm sorry." The words were barely audible. "I'm a right mess-up. I can see why you deem me a lost cause." To his relief, Sirius taut face loosened a bit, and a fragment of the usual mirth re-entered his gaze.

"No, there's still hope. But stop acting the hero. I know you don't do it consciously." he added when he noticed he'd ruffled his godson's feathers. "It's your damn Gryffindor trait. Definitely the result of mixing your dad's craziness with your mum's everlasting love." Harry grinned sheepishly and Sirius sighed, shaking his head again. "Think before you act from now on, yeah?" Harry nodded in mute agreement. "Perfect. Oh and ever go into that damn forest again, and I'll use your Firebolt to clean out the chimney." Harry rolled his eyes, but nodded again all the same. Best not push the man any further.


End file.
